FOGLESONG ELIZABETH ANNE

This article intends to provide insight into the atmosphere of tension and the heightened emotions in the United States following the election of President Donald J. Trump in 2016. It offers a psychological and emotional perspective. First, the historical context is presented. The article creates a concise framework for American history, American cultural history, and American identity. It introduces the nation’s founding legal and political documents and Victorian English roots, as well as the character of the events that led up to the American Revolution. Key events and movements in the development of America are then discussed as well. Within this context, the events and cultural phenomena of the last 60 years in the United States are explored with greater detail, beginning with the counter-culture movement of the 1960s. The article illuminates what it has felt like to live in America as a black, LGBT, native, female, immigrant, and wealthy, well-educated, WASP male American, and what it feels like in 2016-2018. The American two-party political system and the dynamic chaos of the many voices within America are observed in this climate. US domestic and foreign policy are examined from this emotion-based perspective as well, and all are woven into the larger global landscape of globalization, the increased speed of communication, and changing demographics. Finally, the article draws upon conversations, movements, and the current atmosphere in America during the fall of 2018 as a potential window into how the United States may be going forward culturally. This article is neither endorsed by nor solicited by a political party. The perspectives it presents are solely the author’s.