The fictional republic horatio alger and american political discourse carol nackenoff swarthmore college cnacken1swarthmoreedu this work is brought to you for free and open access by it has been accepted for inclusion in political science faculty works by an authorized administrator of works for more information please contact myworksswarthmoreedu follow this and additional works at . Investigating the persistence and place of the formulas of horatio alger in american politics the fictional republic reassesses the alger story in its gilded age context carol nackenoff argues that alger was a keen observer of the dislocations and economic pitfalls of the rapidly industrializing nation and devised a set of symbols that addressed anxieties about power and identity as classes were increasingly divided by wealth life chances residence space and culture alger . Investigating the persistence and place of the formulas of horatio alger in american politics the fictional republic reassesses the alger story in its gilded age context carol nackenoff argues that alger was a keen observer of the dislocations and economic pitfalls of the rapidly industrializing nation and devised a set of symbols that addressed anxieties about power and identity as classes were increasingly divided by wealth life chances residence space and culture alger maintained . Stanford libraries official online search tool for books media journals databases government documents and more. Investigating the persistence and place of the formulas of horatio alger in american politics the fictional republic reassesses the alge