The Populist Style : Trump, Le Pen and Performances of the Far Right

Abstract

The first interdisciplinary comparative examination of populism in the cases of Donald Trump and Marine Le PenOffers an original interdisciplinary perspective on politics that introduces concepts, methods and tools drawn from theatre and performance studies to the literature in political scienceProvides theoretical innovations in the study of populism as a performative and stylistic phenomenonIntroduces an original methodological tool: the political performance analysis questionnaire (PPAQ) which synthesises inputs from theatre studies and sociology, while providing a transferable tool for scholars interested in examining political performancesDevelops a detailed comparative case study through an analysis of a corpus of diversified political performances (including rally speeches, presidential debates, and political advertisements)Offers the first book-length comparative analysis of Marine Le Pen and her use of populism in the English language, along with a comparison with Donald TrumpThrough a comparative case study analysing the 2016 and 2017 presidential campaigns of Donald Trump and Marine Le Pen, The Populist Style examines the links between far-right ideology and populism. Adopting an interdisciplinary framework combining political science and performance studies, this book develops a critical definition of populism as a style, that is, as a repertoire of political performances that shapes and is given shape by ideological content.The book argues that the populist style relies on three clusters of performances: performances of identity, performances of transgression and performances of crisis. Through an analysis of a corpus including presidential debates, speeches during rallies and political advertisements drawn from the campaigns of Trump and Le Pen, this book shows the adaptability of the populist style and its relevance as discursive-performative strategy across two different national contexts as it was used by far-right political actors to make their reactionary agenda and exclusionary nationalism more appealing.