‘... A 40-year-old black man made the point to me’: Everyday knowledge and the performance of leadership in contemporary British politics

Atkins, Judi and Finlayson, Alan ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3939-349X (2013) ‘... A 40-year-old black man made the point to me’: Everyday knowledge and the performance of leadership in contemporary British politics. Political Studies, 61 (1). 161–177. ISSN 1467-9248

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Abstract

In this article we demonstrate the application of rhetorical political analysis in the study of political communication and political ideas and ideologies. Taking the rhetorical use of anecdotes as a case study, we find that their use by mainstream party leaders in Britain has proliferated markedly since the mid-1990s. Drawing on examples from speeches by leaders of all three main parties, we show how these stories are employed as a form of argumentative proof that relies significantly on the elevation of ‘everyday’ experience and knowledge above expert or technical knowledge. We argue that this reflects a more general ‘valorisation of lay knowledge’ and, moreover, that it is indicative of a form of populist ideology.

Item Type: Article
Faculty \ School: Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies
UEA Research Groups: Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Policy & Politics
Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Political, Social and International Studies
Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Cultural Politics, Communications & Media
Related URLs:
Depositing User: Katherine Humphries
Date Deposited: 02 Jan 2013 11:13
Last Modified: 02 Feb 2024 01:35
URI: https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/40632
DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-9248.2012.00953.x

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