Stolen Pride – Loss, Shame and the Rise of the Right -

Stolen Pride – Loss, Shame and the Rise of the Right

22/10/2024

Culture • EUA • Books • Neoliberalism • Sociology

By MATTHIAS AMMANN*

Commentary on the newly released book by Arlie Russell Hochschild

Stolen pride: loss, shame, and the rise of the right (Stolen Pride: Loss, Shame, and the Rise of the Right) is the title of the latest book released by Arlie Russell Hochschild in 2024. A book in which the sociologist and professor emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley, describes in detail the long immersion she made in the emotional universe of part of the Republican electorate and helps us understand the phenomenon of the American extreme right.

It is important to note that Arlie Russell Hochschild had already made major contributions to the field of sociology of emotions on topics such as work, family, the distribution of gender roles and the commercialization of affection. More recently, she decided to dedicate her attention and experience to the phenomenon of the rise of the right.

It is worth mentioning that Stolen Pride é, in fact, a continuation of the research work that the author carried out in her other book from 2016 – Strangers in their own land. This book was recognized by critics who described in detail his immersion in Lake Charles, Louisiana, a region marked by climate catastrophes, the actions of the petrochemical industry and a large concentration of Republican voters who vehemently oppose state regulations, despite the regional deterioration.

In this book, Arlie Russell Hochschild has changed scenery and ventured to Pikeville, Kentucky, in the heart of the Appalachians. This is a mountainous region with a declining coal industry, widespread poverty, and a severe drug crisis. It is a region with a white majority, which in the last election voted overwhelmingly for Donald Trump, and has also been the scene of white supremacist demonstrations.

The work carried out in the book attempts to analyze the “deep history” of the various inhabitants and, as in Lake Charles, the author discovered that in Pikeville there is great suffering resulting from the economic and cultural losses that have occurred in recent decades that have directly affected the pride and self-esteem of the population. Suffering that is even greater for white men with low education, who have become especially vulnerable to diseases of despair – addictions, alcoholism and suicide.

Once a prosperous area with a coal industry that was a source of national pride, Pikeville has suffered greatly from globalization. Outsourcing of production to cheaper countries and regions, automation, the decline of unions and the concentration of economic activity in large cities have led to a decline in the region's quality of life.

In addition to the concrete loss of quality of life, it is also important to highlight the presence of two important cultural narratives in the local population. The first is the narrative of the American dream, which suggests that the son should have a more prosperous and abundant life than his father. The second narrative is based on the Protestant ethic, which values hard work, autonomy and self-responsibility for individual success and failure.

The encounter of these rigorous narratives, in a context of regional economic decline and low social mobility, generates what Arlie Russell Hochschild called pride paradox (paradox of pride). A paradox in which the individual feels ashamed for not achieving the expected success. Shame that can be self-directed, projected onto a group as guilt or seek a creative solution.

When shame is projected as guilt, it typically seeks to blame others. line cutters (queue jumpers). From their meritocratic perspective, the government, affirmative action policies and attention given to women, African-Americans, immigrants and refugees would be unfair, as it harms those who are waiting their turn to realize the American dream.

Furthermore, in addition to feeling that they are being robbed economically and in the job market, these people also believe that their ancestors' history, biography and lifestyle are being defamed, harmed or erased as rural life is portrayed as backward and ignorant by the media, social networks and the speeches of liberal Democrats.

Economic and cultural blows deprive them of the pride of identity that seeks security, acceptance and admiration, but which also fears rejection, diminishment, erasure and being frowned upon.

It is worth noting that most of those interviewed by the researcher want to feel useful, to have an honorable and respected place in society. However, the changes that have occurred in recent decades have caused them to lose their place in society. national pride economy (national economy of pride/dignity).

The losses listed above, in addition to shame, can produce anguish and anger, as well as a desire to restore a pride that they have been deprived of, gradually leading to discourses in which they are victims of a system that robs them of their pride and dignity, and that it is necessary to restore the respect that has been lost. These discourses express a need to improve the job market and to value regional culture, but sometimes they also veer into nationalism, the valorization of whiteness or even celebrate Nazi-fascism.

Another interesting aspect brought up by the book is the emergence of the figure of good bully (good bully). The good bully, in this case represented by Trump, would be a warrior who would fight for them. Someone capable of promoting an anti-shaming ritual that consists of four acts: (i) makes a provocative statement; (ii) receives a public reprimand from the media or liberal Democrats; (iii) poses as a victim and ashamed or humiliated; (iv) returns or retaliates the humiliation to those who shamed him. Thus, an identification would occur between the shamed and Donald Trump. Trump would be the one capable of seeking revenge and restoring lost pride. This ritual carries the hope of restoring the dignity that was stripped away in the paradox of pride.

During the above ritual, other affective transformations also occur. For example, losses become theft; shame becomes guilt; and sadness becomes anger. And especially the discursive transformation from loss to theft—of pride, of lifestyle, of white power, of visibility, of a heroic American history, etc.—creates an environment of generalized suspicion. Suspicion that can easily discredit the electoral process.

In conclusion, Arlie Russell Hochschild’s book is a remarkable work, supported by a solid empirical base and significant empathetic effort. It reveals the harmful effects of the pride paradox in an economy marked by limited opportunities and a heightened responsibility for failure, making it fundamental for a deeper understanding of the current political landscape.

*Matthias Ammann is an economist, psychoanalyst, and holds a PhD in Cultural Studies from the University of Minho..

Reference

Arlie Russell Hochschild. Stolen pride: loss, shame, and the rise of the right. New York, The New Press, 2024, 380 pp. [https://amzn.to/48exz9p]