On "Likability"

January 26, 2024 12:51 AM

Likability is charisma in a muzzle—its weakling little sibling, the tamed runt of the personality family. It helps the bitter pill of technocracy go down, providing just enough quasi-populist flair to prop up and lubricate broken social architecture that has left us at risk of full-blown fascism. from You Really Like Me! [The Baffler; ungated]
posted by chavenet (3 comments total)

Oooh thanks for posting. Off to read more of Lily Scherlis' work!

Likability is charisma in a muzzle—its weakling little sibling, the tamed runt of the personality family. It helps the bitter pill of technocracy go down, providing just enough quasi-populist flair to prop up and lubricate broken social architecture that has left us at risk of full-blown fascism. Likability keeps people invested in the president as the icon of the status quo, but not so cathected onto one person that they resist the transfer of power. When it’s time to concede, the likable president’s voter base smiles and waves; the charismatic leader’s followers storm the Capitol. Likability is a Band-Aid for the cracks in capitalism. Real charisma is duct tape.

posted by spamandkimchi at 10:27 AM on January 26 [1 favorite]

I've long thought of political likeability as two-fold. There's the objective likeability that is determined by the media-capital-cultural zeitgeist and then there is our personal subjective opinions. In general, I find people quite willing to bring likeability into political conversation as a means to avoid speaking their true reason for approving of a candidate.
posted by tkinvt at 10:35 AM on January 26 [1 favorite]

When it’s time to concede, the likable president’s voter base smiles and waves; the charismatic leader’s followers storm the Capitol. Likability is a Band-Aid for the cracks in capitalism. Real charisma is duct tape.

What does this even mean? Insurrectionist Trump is the only one who can fix capitalism?

Articles like this, which seem to be this publication's stock in trade, strike me as glib but vacuous. Increasingly I understand why it's called The Baffler. If you can't dazzle them with brilliance...
posted by Artifice_Eternity at 4:19 PM on January 26 [2 favorites]