Rhetoric Review Oct 2002

"The Perfect Enemy": Clinton, the Contradictions of Capitalism, and Slaying the Sin Within

Virginia Anderson

Abstract

Bill Clinton can be seen as a perfect embodiment of the contradictory tensions in capitalist ideology between production and consumption that were described by the sociologist Daniel Bell in 1976. Kenneth Burke's scapegoat paradigm explains why Clinton, as representative of this central flaw in capitalism, was marked for vehement attack and ultimate casting out. Examining the House Managers' choice of Clinton as scapegoat illuminates the danger inherent in any attempt to construct an ideologically consistent Order such as "the rule of law" and thereby seize the high moral ground.

Journal
Rhetoric Review
Published
2002-10-01
DOI
10.1207/s15327981rr2104_4
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Topics
modern rhetorical theory body and rhetoric
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References (29) · 1 in this index

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