Spellbound: How Charisma Shaped American History from the Puritans to Donald Trump
What happens when Americans lose faith in their religious institutions—and politicians fill the void?Everyone feels it. Cultural and political life in America has become unrecognizable and strange. Firebrands and would-be sages have taken the place of reasonable and responsible leaders. Nuanced debates have given way to the smug confidence of yard signs. How did we get here?
The Hoover Applied History Working Group hosted a special book-launch seminar, "Spellbound: How Charisma Shaped American History from the Puritans to Donald Trump", on Tuesday, December 2, 2025. In Spellbound, Molly Worthen argues that we will understand our present moment if we learn the story of charisma in America. From the Puritans and Andrew Jackson to Black nationalists and Donald Trump, the saga of American charisma stars figures who possess a dangerous and alluring power to move crowds. They invite followers into a cosmic drama that fulfills hopes and rectifies grievances—and these charismatic leaders insist that they alone plot the way.
The story of charisma in America reveals that when traditional religious institutions fail to deliver on their promise of a meaningful life, people will get their spiritual needs met in a warped cultural and political landscape dominated by those who appear to have the power to bring order and meaning out of chaos. Charismatic leaders address spiritual needs, offering an alternate reality where people have knowledge, power, and heroic status, whether as divinely chosen instruments of God or those who will restore national glory.
Worthen’s centuries-spanning historical research places a crucial religious lens on the cultural, economic, and political upheavals facing Americans today.
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The opinions expressed on this channel are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Hoover Institution or Stanford University.
© 2025 by the Board of Trustees of Leland Stanford Junior University.
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