The role of narrative in political campaigning: An analysis of speeches by Barack Obama

Abstract

Nation-states persist as the dominant pattern of political organization. Their survival depends on the self-identification of the citizenry as a national community. Narratives or ‘stories of peoplehood’ tell people that they are part of this unique community. This article focuses on the American nation as imagined by Barack Obama. In his speeches Obama portrays the America nation as a people unified by a shared belief in the American Creed and sanctified by the symbolism of an American civil religion. It is argued here that it is this addressing of the broadest possible coalition of voters which contributed to the success of the Obama campaign.