Psychonaut
08-02-2010, 10:05 AM
Sarah Palin, "Mama Grizzlies," Carl Jung, and the Power of Archetypes
Arianna Huffington
I've been thinking about this paradox: the most important political ad of 2010 so far did not play on television, and came from someone not currently running for any office. It was Sarah Palin's latest web video, "Mama Grizzlies."
For those who haven't seen it yet, the video features footage of women of various ages taken at an assortment of Tea Party and Palin rallies, accompanied by audio clips from a recent Palin speech. Among the choice sound bytes:
"It seems like it's kind of a mom awakening... women are rising up."
"I always think of the mama grizzly bears that rise up on their hind legs when somebody is coming to attack their cubs."
"You thought pit bulls were tough? Well, you don't wanna mess with the mama grizzlies!"
It's classic Palin. And, as often is the case with Palin, the video doesn't feature a single word about policy -- as many of her critics have pointed out. But they are completely missing the point. Indeed, this video and the response to it are a perfect illustration of why we need to widen the scope of our political analysis.
We are awash in crises right now -- crises that require smart and creative policy fixes. So why is somebody who so rarely deals in policy fixes so popular? It's because Palin's message operates on a level deeper than policy statements about the economy or financial reform or health care or the war in Afghanistan.
To really understand her appeal, we need less policy analysis and more psychology. Specifically, we need to hear from that under-appreciated political pundit Carl Jung...
Read the rest (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/sarah-palin-mama-grizzlie_b_666642.html?ref=twitter).
What do you make of this analysis?
Arianna Huffington
I've been thinking about this paradox: the most important political ad of 2010 so far did not play on television, and came from someone not currently running for any office. It was Sarah Palin's latest web video, "Mama Grizzlies."
For those who haven't seen it yet, the video features footage of women of various ages taken at an assortment of Tea Party and Palin rallies, accompanied by audio clips from a recent Palin speech. Among the choice sound bytes:
"It seems like it's kind of a mom awakening... women are rising up."
"I always think of the mama grizzly bears that rise up on their hind legs when somebody is coming to attack their cubs."
"You thought pit bulls were tough? Well, you don't wanna mess with the mama grizzlies!"
It's classic Palin. And, as often is the case with Palin, the video doesn't feature a single word about policy -- as many of her critics have pointed out. But they are completely missing the point. Indeed, this video and the response to it are a perfect illustration of why we need to widen the scope of our political analysis.
We are awash in crises right now -- crises that require smart and creative policy fixes. So why is somebody who so rarely deals in policy fixes so popular? It's because Palin's message operates on a level deeper than policy statements about the economy or financial reform or health care or the war in Afghanistan.
To really understand her appeal, we need less policy analysis and more psychology. Specifically, we need to hear from that under-appreciated political pundit Carl Jung...
Read the rest (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/arianna-huffington/sarah-palin-mama-grizzlie_b_666642.html?ref=twitter).
What do you make of this analysis?