The Populist Persuasion: An American History Book

Populist Persuasion is the gold standard for books on populism in the United States. Written by progressive historian Michael Kazin it describes the continuous presence of the populist persuasion in American politics, pretty much from its founding to today (although it was written before the Great Recession and the emergence of the Occupy movement and the Tea Party). Perhaps most surprising to many will be Kazin's sympathetic attitude towards populism, which is strongly influenced by his quite favorable reading of the original agrarian populists of the late 19th century. In the conclusion he writes, for example, "At the core of the populist tradition is an insight of great democratic and moral significance... We should not speak solely within its terms, but, without it, we are lost."

While Populist Persuasion is a fascinating history of a much ignored yet fundamental aspect of American politics, it is at times a bit frustrating, as Kazin's definition and application of populism is quite loose and it is not always clear how central the "populist persuasion" is to the political actors he describes.It is also at times a bit too political for my taste, calling upon his (assumed progressive) readers to fight the good fight. At the same time, his own populist critique of the progressive elite is quite refreshing.

Of particular interest, at least to me, a fellow scholar of political discourse and ideology, is his short reflection on methodology, at the end of the book. It is rare for scholars to be explicit about their assumptions and Kazin's approach is clear and convincing.