A Bourdieusian Analysis of Trumpism

What would Pierre Bourdieu say about Trumpism? No doubt he would be critical. But how might he approach the topic? This paper centers on American right-wing intellectuals and asks how Bourdieu's thinking about conservatism and populism might inform our understanding of Trumpism in the US and beyond. Bourdieu would likely cast an analysis of Trumpism and its right-wing populist support within the broader framework of a sociology of intellectuals. Claims for what is Trumpism and how it is best defined would be analyzed in terms of intellectual struggle within cultural academic, media, and political fields. A Bourdieusian perspective would not claim to offer a proper definition of right-wing populism or Trumpism; rather, it would bring to light the contested nature of competing definition and identify the underlying social conditions that make them possible.