Crisis Thought

dc.contributor.authorMorris, Edwin Kenten
dc.contributor.committeechairDebrix, Francoisen
dc.contributor.committeememberNickel, Patricia Michelleen
dc.contributor.committeememberNelson, Scott G.en
dc.contributor.committeememberLuke, Timothy W.en
dc.contributor.departmentPolitical Scienceen
dc.date.accessioned2016-10-05T08:00:22Zen
dc.date.available2016-10-05T08:00:22Zen
dc.date.issued2016-10-04en
dc.description.abstractCrisis thought is an idea that gives a name to and accounts for some of the problematics of the sign crisis in political, social, cultural, and economic discourse. Specifically, crisis thought is a discursive formation, a concept used loosely here to refer to an assemblage of signs such as anxiety or fear that evoke or invoke similar, but inaccurate connotations as crisis in political and everyday usage. The general question this study grapples with is why political, social, cultural, and economic crises are often recognized and, yet, are seemingly unrecognized, unaddressed, or accepted as a basic part of political and ordinary life. This study focuses on the mobilization of crisis thought by the 24/7 news media and throughout politics in the United States. Working outside of economic and Marxist traditions of crisis studies, this study focuses on the effects of crisis thought by way of a critical, interpretive, and interdisciplinary approach. There are two goals of this project. The first is to offer some of the linkages between crisis thought, security, and liberalism. The second goal is to examine through various examples and vignettes how, where, and why crisis thought manifests itself in US politics and in ordinary life. Some topics addressed in this study include: news media, infrastructure, police militarization, mass shootings, US electoral politics, and the alleged US politics of crisis. In the final analysis, this study suggests that 24/7 news media and political mobilizations of crisis thought paradoxically help secure the ontological security of subjectivities as linked to securing security and the logos of liberalism. This study illuminates a peculiar aspect about liberal capitalist democracies: the (re)production of a myriad of crises and, thus, crisis thought, in order to perpetuate itself.en
dc.description.degreePh. D.en
dc.format.mediumETDen
dc.identifier.othervt_gsexam:8989en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10919/73167en
dc.publisherVirginia Techen
dc.rightsIn Copyrighten
dc.rights.urihttp://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/en
dc.subjectcrisisen
dc.subjectcrisis thoughten
dc.subjectpoliticsen
dc.subjectmediaen
dc.subjectsecurityen
dc.titleCrisis Thoughten
dc.typeDissertationen
thesis.degree.disciplineSocial, Political, Ethical, and Cultural Thoughten
thesis.degree.grantorVirginia Polytechnic Institute and State Universityen
thesis.degree.leveldoctoralen
thesis.degree.namePh. D.en

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