Mad Men: The Death and Redemption of American Democracy(Politics, Literature, & Film)

For seven seasons, AMC’s Mad Men captivated audiences with the story of Don Draper, an advertising executive whose personal and professional successes and failures took viewers on a roller coaster ride through America’s tumultuous 1960s. More than just a television show about one of advertising’s “bad boys,” the series investigates the principles of the American regime, exploring whether or not the American Dream is a sustainable vision of human flourishing and happiness. This collection of essays investigates the show’s engagement with the philosophic and political foundations of American democracy.

Table of Contents:
Chapter 1: Mad Men and the End of History Chapter 2: Don Draper’s Life, His Liberty, and His Need for Happiness Chapter 3: Mad Men’s Selective Nostalgia and Uncertain Progress Chapter 4: Mastering the Infinite: Mad Men’s Poetic Modernity Chapter 5: “Just Like a Man Does”: Gender, Sexual Orientation, and Autonomy in Mad Men Chapter 6: Mad Men’s Tell-Tale Heart of Racism Chapter 7: Dante and Don Draper Share a Coke Chapter 8: Between Past and Future: Promises and Forgiveness in Mad Men

About the Author :
Sara MacDonald is professor in the Great Books Program at St. Thomas University. Andrew Moore is associate professor and director of the Great Books Program at St. Thomas University.

Review :
Editors Sara MacDonald and Andrew Moore have assembled a provocative and intriguing set of authors who situate the show as an important political text, with something to tell both scholars and fans about the evolution of the American ideals and idealism.... This volume will not only be of interest to fans of Mad Men and to scholars looking for ways to do this sort of interdisciplinary textual analysis, but it is also likely to provide those of us who teach political theory with a way to engage our students, via popular culture, with some of the enduring themes and classic dilemmas of our tradition. It is a welcome and intriguing addition to the scholarly canon of work on Matthew Weiner’s deserving and fascinating television series. This book highlights the utility of media in exploring political ideas and events.... More importantly, the book provides an interesting interpretation of political philosophy as it may influence popular culture, via the thought of Isaiah Berlin, Dante, and Hannah Arendt, among others. Each essay explores a different aspect of Mad Men’s political imagery, although ultimately the essays work together to provide a comprehensive view of the show’s portrayal of significant political ideas. Taken together, these essays provide strong evidence against the trivial interpretation of “Mad Men as an indictment of the shallowness of contemporary liberal society” and “empty liberalism,” successfully arguing that it also provides a commentary on human nature and an optimistic view of the American way of life. The focus of the work on the American political project and how it leads to progress and redemption are what set this book apart from other critical works on Mad Men, and it acts as an example of a well-edited collection that is useful and interesting at the same time. MacDonald and Moore have gathered together beautiful, insightful essays that demonstrate Mad Men’s rightful placein broader political and philosophical debates on human freedom and the ends of modern politics. By examining the personal narratives of the series’ compelling, complicated characters within the context of the American political regime, these authors illuminate the perils, but also the promises of American democracy. Sara McDonald and Andrew Moore have compiled a thoughtful and engaging series of essays that examine not only the television show Mad Men, but the American century that was essentially the centerpiece of Matthew Weiner’s narrative. The 1960s was, in many ways, a period of refounding in the United States—with shifts in society, in political participation, our understanding of citizenship, and the role of the United States in the international community. Mad Men: The Death and Redemption of American Democracy ably wrestles with many of the ways to think about this period of refounding, examining our understanding of democracy as it is woven through the narrative arc of the show itself.