1. Locating Masterframes in History: An Analysis of the Religious Masterframe of the Abolition Movement and its Influence on Movement Trajectory.
- Author
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Whooley, Owen
- Subjects
ANTISLAVERY movements ,SOCIAL movements ,RECONSTRUCTION (U.S. history, 1865-1877) ,RELIGION ,CIVIL war ,SOCIOLOGY - Abstract
Critiqued as being a-historical, current social movement theorists argue for a more dynamic, theoretical model that focuses on processes within historical contexts (). This paper seeks to apply existing social movement theory on framing to the historically, embedded case of the American abolitionist movement. Specifically, this paper analyzes the influence of the adopted religious masterframe of the abolitionist movement on the trajectory of the movement through a case study of the American Anti-Slavery Society (AAS). Prior to the Civil War, the good versus evil framework encouraged by the religious masterframe effectively mobilized movement followers against slavery. However, with Emancipation and the onset of the muddled political environment of Reconstruction, the religious masterframe no longer resonated well with the changed context or mustered the same degree of support. Attempts to alter the masterframe to a rights-based masterframe compromised the integrity of the movement’s framing process. Ultimately, the movement dissolved, unable to remedy their collective action frame with the new political reality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2004
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