The Concept of Progress in Presidential Political Discourse in the United States (1929-1935)

Ernesto Domínguez López; Susana Hernández Plá

doi:10.31261/rias.22805

Published: 2026-06-30

Vol. 19 No. 1 (2026)

The Concept of Progress in Presidential Political Discourse in the United States (1929-1935)

Ernesto Domínguez López

, Susana Hernández Plá

Section: VARIA

https://doi.org/10.31261/rias.22805

Abstract

This article examines the redefinition of the concept of “progress” in US presidential political discourse during the Great Depression and the first New Deal (1929–1935). Applying methods from conceptual history (semantic and onomasiological) alongside an evolutionary history framework, we analyze the speeches of Herbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt. Hoover articulated a classical liberal definition of progress centered on individual freedom, self-sufficiency, and formal equality of opportunity—a position that became disconnected from the structural realities of the crisis, thereby fracturing the existing political consensus. In contrast, Roosevelt constructed an alternative definition that assigned the state a central managerial role, emphasized collective welfare, and prioritized the “forgotten man.” However, both definitions preserved racial hierarchies, excluding African Americans from full discursive inclusion. The article argues that, while the concept of progress transformed in response to structural change and functioned as a contested tool of political legitimation, its apparent universality coexisted with—and did not dismantle—deeply embedded social inequalities.

Keywords:

progress , presidential discourse , Great Depression , New Deal , political consensus , racial hierarchy

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Domínguez López, E., & Hernández Plá, S. (2026). The Concept of Progress in Presidential Political Discourse in the United States (1929-1935). Review of International American Studies, 19(1), 227–244. https://doi.org/10.31261/rias.22805

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Ernesto Domínguez López

edominguezlopez76@gmail.com
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4305-1097

Affiliation:

University of Havana, Cuba Cuba

Bio Statement (e.g., department and rank)

PhD in Historical Sciences (2011), Master in Contemporary History (2008) and BA in History from the University of Havana, all degrees awarded summa cum laude. Studied Nuclear Physics (1995-2000). Full Professor at the Center for Hemispheric and United Studies (CEHSEU), University of Havana (since 2012). Coordinator of the US Study Group at CEHSEU (since 2015). Former Department Chair (2008-2010) and researcher (2006-2008) at the Center for European Studies.
Visiting professor, visiting scholar and visiting lecturer at several universities and academic institutions in Cuba, United States, Colombia, Argentina, France, United Kingdom, Spain, Finland, Greece and Germany. Tinker Visiting Professor and Nave Visiting Scholar at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (USA), Visiting Scholar at the École des Hautes Études en Sciences Socialles (France), Mare Balticum Fellow at the University of Rostock (Germany).
Member of the National Doctoral Tribunals in Political Sciences (since 2013), Historical Sciences (since 2018) and Philosophical Sciences (since 2018); member of the Scientific Council of the University of Havana (since 2015). Creator and coordinator of the Master Program in US Studies and Hemispheric Geopolitics (CEHSEU, since 2017). Former member of the Directive Board of the Cathedrae for the Study of Complexity (2010-2015) and the Commission for Scientific Degrees of the University of Havana (2015-2020).
His research interests include the study of post-industrial (knowledge) capitalism, US political system and processes, Cuba-US relations, international relations, political theory and theory of history. He has taught undergraduate and graduate level courses on subjects like Cuban history, Cuban foreign policy, Cuba-US relations, research methodology in social sciences, research methodology in non-linear systems, contemporary history, political economy, political sciences, US politics, international migrations, history of social sciences, history of systems of thinking, and theory of history (source: Academia.edu).

Susana Hernández Plá

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0348-1631

Affiliation:

University of Havana, Cuba Cuba

Bio Statement (e.g., department and rank)

Susana Hernández Plá is Professor and researcher at the University of Havana, Cuba, affiliated with the Department of History. She holds a PhD in American History (United States) from the University of Havana, as well as a Master’s degree in Contemporary History with a specialization in hemispheric affairs (Latin America and the United States).

Her research engages twentieth-century American history from a hemispheric perspective, with particular attention to the ideological constructs of progress and the American Dream, and to the rhetoric of U.S. political discourse. Her work includes analyses of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s “Four Freedoms” speech as a key site for understanding the articulation of modern notions of progress in the Americas.

In addition to her academic work, she has experience in higher education administration and has contributed to the organization of academic conferences. She has also been involved in social research consultancy, bringing together historical inquiry with quantitative and survey-based methodologies.

Vol. 19 No. 1 (2026)
Published: 2026-06-30

eISSN: 1991-2773

10.31261/RIAS

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University of Silesia Press

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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The Concept of Progress in Presidential Political Discourse in the United States (1929-1935)

Abstract

Keywords:

Ernesto Domínguez López

Susana Hernández Plá

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