Taxpayers: An analysis of taxpayer discourse and a sketch of taxpayers as social types

This thesis seeks to understand how the taxpayer stands in opposition with the general will of the group, yet remains a persuasive, powerful and accepted subject of political discourse. Taking a lead from Georg Simmel, the thesis defines four aspects of the social type called "the taxpayer": (1) taxpayers owes their existence to the tax system; (2) taxpayers are utilitarian and interested in serving themselves; (3) taxpayers are powerless because they are dominated by the tax system; (4) taxpayers' desire for personal freedom motivates them to subvert the tax system. The theoretical discussion is supplemented with a discourse analysis of commentaries published by the National Taxpayers Union (NTU). Finally, this thesis situates the discourse mode of taxpayers within a broader social context (such as the 2404 U.S. Presidential debates) and identifies how the taxpayer's style of argument is replicated in discussions having nothing to do with taxation.