Constrained by Duality: Third-Party Master Narratives in the 2016 Presidential Election

The 2016 presidential election saw the rise and fall of third-party candidates Jill Stein and Gary Johnson. This essay proposes that such third-party candidates are challenged in navigating the dichotomous nature of the myth of the American Dream that serves as the basis of party master narratives. Suggesting that third-party candidates attempt to create alternative narratives through what Rushing and Frentz called dialectical transformation and dialectical synthesis, the essay examines how such strategies were put to use by Stein and Johnson, and how they demonstrate a significant disadvantage for third parties.