Susan McWilliams Barndt
Susan McWilliams Barndt is Professor of Politics at Pomona College.
Her most recent book is The American Road Trip and American Political
Thought (Lexington, 2018).
Articles by Susan McWilliams Barndt
Legitimized Rapes
Claremont, CA. In Ayn Rand’s The Fountainhead, the hero Howard Roark violently rapes a woman named Dominique, forcing her into submission “like a master taking shameful, contemptuous possession” of a…
On Competitiveness
“Competitiveness” is the new “proactive” – the word, to paraphrase The Simpsons, that dumb people are using to sound important. Or, more precisely, it’s the word that ostensibly smart people…
Why We’re Gaga for Gaga
For all the unpredictability of her outfits, there is one thing that has been quite predictable about her work: Gaga’s constant equation of love with violence and humiliation.
The Social Network Fantasy
In today’s Los Angeles Times, Neil Gabler has an insightful piece on the way in which the “gang of friends” has become the dominant social group on American television.
Not a “Modern Family” At All
Claremont, CA. ABC’s hit series “Modern Family” has returned to the air for its second season. It’s the “modern” elements of the “Modern Family” that you’re supposed to notice right…
Which Came First, the Chicken or the McNugget?
In many ways, the Los Angeles County Fair is not so different from county fairs all over the country ... except for its agricultural exhibit.
It’s a Boy! It’s a Girl! It’s a Technology-Enabled “Sex Party”!
How do we explain a culture that tells children that sex doesn’t matter much, that “girls can do anything boys can do,” and at the same moment is treating the…
Your Huddled Masses, Yearning To Make Par
I people really want to see the current state of the union, they need to take a look at my favorite part of Liberty State Park, which is the fact…
“Open” Primaries and the Illusion of Choice
Claremont, CA. On Tuesday, the residents of this fair state voted to “open” the California primaries. From now on, every voter in the state will receive the same ballot in…
Lessons from the Jersey Shore
Jersey Shore teaches us something about the tragic dimensions of the culture in which we live, and in which we raise young people.
Our Hookup Culture
Hooking up is almost bound to emerge as a norm among young adults in a large-scale society where mobility is highly prized and cultivated.