ABSTRACT
This essay investigates two programs central to reality television’s “blue collar boom,” Here Comes Honey Boo Boo and Duck Dynasty, to explore the relationship between neoliberalism, gender, and White, working-class belonging. In an environment that is postfeminist and neoliberal, women are expected to adhere to rules of disciplined femininity, both in personal care and in the home. For working-class men, notions of rugged masculinity and manual labor jobs underscore the “provider” mandate of traditional masculinity, as men “work hard” to ensure economic stability for their families. Moreover, Whiteness is fractured along lines of class belonging and regional identity; an endorsement of neoliberal beliefs about hard work and individualism accounts for the working-classness of Whites and, in particular, “White trash” individuals. The “White trash” family in Here Comes Honey Boo Boo and the upwardly mobile “rednecks” of Duck Dynasty serve as exemplars of how working-class Whiteness and the cultural, working-class performance of hard work, individualization, and participation in the competitive free market are illustrative of a neoliberal success story and serve to reinforce neoliberal ideology.
