Paper short abstract:

In preparation for a casebook on legend and politics, this presentation surveys the long-standing interrogation of the interpenetration of political life and contemporary legend and provides an initial framework for a more systematic approach to political uncertainty and explanatory narratives.

Paper long abstract:

Bill Ellis (1989; 2002; 2017) has noted that legend telling is an essentially political act: it suggests and intends action, anything from increased alertness to insurrection. Although the omnipresence of social media has arguably exacerbated misinformation, “fake news,” and conspiracy thinking—and made them more evident as the residue of legend’s essentially ephemeral performance context is trapped in the internet’s “self-archiving” nature (McNeill 2020; Tangherlini 2021)—rumor, gossip, and legend have always interpenetrated with our political understanding. Politics implies the effort to organize collaborative systems within groups of people too large to rely on the immediate bonds of affiliation and mutual obligation and concern of small groups. In urban, colonial, and post-colonial contexts one finds oneself impelled to negotiate the heretofore Other, and the uncertainty that arises from the unforeseeable consequences find succor in the surety legend often supplies, informing whether and how to act. In preparation of an edited and annotated casebook on “Legend and Politics,” which will bring together critical readings while inviting and presenting new work, this presentation draws on the history of legend scholarship and its intersection with politics, broadly understood, ranging from ideas of citizenship and class to issues of governance to elections, politicians, and parties.