Rough rider in the White House : Theodore Roosevelt and the politics of desire /
Watts, Sarah Lyons, 1942-
Rough rider in the White House : Theodore Roosevelt and the politics of desire / Sarah Watts. - x, 289 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Includes bibliographical references (pages 269-277) and index.
"The hot life of feeling" -- Inner demons -- Women, apes, and "baneful things" -- Cowboy soldiers -- War.
"Who was Theodore Roosevelt? Most of us think of him as one of America's greatest presidents, a champion of progressive politics, and a master statesman. But many feared the political power that Roosevelt wielded. Woodrow Wilson once called him "the most dangerous man of the age." Mark Twain thought him "clearly insane." William James scorned the "flood of bellicose emotion" he let loose during his presidency. Even his biographer, Edmund Morris, is astonished at Roosevelt's "irrational love of battle."" "In this book, Sarah Watts probes this dark side of the Rough Rider, presenting a fascinating psychological portrait of a man whose personal obsession with masculinity profoundly influenced the fate of a nation. Drawing on his own writings and on media representations of him, Watts attributes the wide appeal of Roosevelt's style of manhood to the way it addressed the hopes and anxieties of men of his time. Like many of his contemporaries, Roosevelt struggled with what it meant to be a man in the modern era. He saw two foes within himself: a fragile weakling and a primitive beast. The weakling he punished and toughened with rigorous, manly pursuits such as hunting, horseback riding, and war. The beast he unleashed through brutal criticisms of homosexuals, immigrants, pacifists, and sissies - anyone who might tarnish the nation's veneer of strength and vigor. With his unabashed paeans to violence and aggressive politics, Roosevelt ultimately offered American men a chance to project their longings and fears onto the nation and its policies. In this way he harnessed the primitive energy of men's desires to propel the march of American civilization - over the bodies of anyone who might stand in its way."--BOOK JACKET.
0226876071 9780226876078
2003003576
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 --Psychology.
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 --Language.
Presidents--United States--Biography
Political culture--History--United States--20th century
Masculinity--Political aspects--History--United States--20th century.
Desire--Political aspects--History--United States--20th century.
Race awareness--Political aspects--History--United States--20th century.
Rhetoric--Political aspects--History--United States--20th century
United States--Politics and government--1901-1909
United States--Foreign relations--1901-1909
E757 / .W35 2003
973.911092
Rough rider in the White House : Theodore Roosevelt and the politics of desire / Sarah Watts. - x, 289 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm
Includes bibliographical references (pages 269-277) and index.
"The hot life of feeling" -- Inner demons -- Women, apes, and "baneful things" -- Cowboy soldiers -- War.
"Who was Theodore Roosevelt? Most of us think of him as one of America's greatest presidents, a champion of progressive politics, and a master statesman. But many feared the political power that Roosevelt wielded. Woodrow Wilson once called him "the most dangerous man of the age." Mark Twain thought him "clearly insane." William James scorned the "flood of bellicose emotion" he let loose during his presidency. Even his biographer, Edmund Morris, is astonished at Roosevelt's "irrational love of battle."" "In this book, Sarah Watts probes this dark side of the Rough Rider, presenting a fascinating psychological portrait of a man whose personal obsession with masculinity profoundly influenced the fate of a nation. Drawing on his own writings and on media representations of him, Watts attributes the wide appeal of Roosevelt's style of manhood to the way it addressed the hopes and anxieties of men of his time. Like many of his contemporaries, Roosevelt struggled with what it meant to be a man in the modern era. He saw two foes within himself: a fragile weakling and a primitive beast. The weakling he punished and toughened with rigorous, manly pursuits such as hunting, horseback riding, and war. The beast he unleashed through brutal criticisms of homosexuals, immigrants, pacifists, and sissies - anyone who might tarnish the nation's veneer of strength and vigor. With his unabashed paeans to violence and aggressive politics, Roosevelt ultimately offered American men a chance to project their longings and fears onto the nation and its policies. In this way he harnessed the primitive energy of men's desires to propel the march of American civilization - over the bodies of anyone who might stand in its way."--BOOK JACKET.
0226876071 9780226876078
2003003576
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 --Psychology.
Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919 --Language.
Presidents--United States--Biography
Political culture--History--United States--20th century
Masculinity--Political aspects--History--United States--20th century.
Desire--Political aspects--History--United States--20th century.
Race awareness--Political aspects--History--United States--20th century.
Rhetoric--Political aspects--History--United States--20th century
United States--Politics and government--1901-1909
United States--Foreign relations--1901-1909
E757 / .W35 2003
973.911092