Clear all
Work #309 · Mid (pre-presidential)

Why Not the Best?

James Earl Carter Jr.
1975 (campaign biography for the 1976 presidential campaign) · English
Campaign autobiography · American Southern evangelical political tradition

The campaign autobiography that introduced Jimmy Carter to America — Georgia governor, Naval officer, peanut farmer, born-again Southern Baptist

Attribute Fingerprint

Rows where works disagree are highlighted in gold. The full ontology grid is shown.

Attribute Why Not the Best? (Mid (pre-presidential))
Time · Extent Infinite
Time · Ontological Status Substantival
Time · Grain Continuous
Time · Freedom Non-Deterministic
Time · Traversability Linear
Time · Dimensionality One
Time · Direction Uni-directional
Space · Extent Infinite
Space · Ontological Status Substantival
Space · Curvature Flat
Space · Dimensionality Three
Space · Locality Local
Matter · Extent Infinite
Matter · Ontological Status Substantival
Matter · Conservation Conserved
Matter · Dimensionality Three
Matter · Locality Local
Observer · Time Instance Single
Observer · Space Instance Single
Observer · Knowledge Extent Partial
Observer · Knowledge Retainment Total
Observer · Physicality Embodied
Observer · Agency Both
Observer · Number Singular
Observer · Metaphysical Agency Personal
Observer · Moral Authority Scripture
Observer · Theological Method
Energy · Extent Infinite
Energy · Ontological Status Substantival
Energy · Conservation Conserved
Energy · Dispersibility Irreversible
Information · Ontological Status Substantival
Information · Cosmic Conservation Conserved
Information · Personal Conservation Conserved
Information · Granularity Continuous

Dimension-by-Dimension Evidence

What each work's passages reveal about its stance on each of the six dimensions.

Time

Why Not the Best?

The autobiographical-political time of Carter's career; the historical time of post-Watergate American politics.

Space

Why Not the Best?

Rural Georgia, the Naval Academy, the Georgia state political space.

Matter

Why Not the Best?

Embodied life on the peanut farm, in submarines, in state government.

Observer

Why Not the Best?

Carter as the autobiographical narrator; the broader American electorate as the political audience.

Energy

Why Not the Best?

The energies of political-religious commitment and engineering-practical work.

Information

Why Not the Best?

The American Southern evangelical-political tradition preserved through the autobiography.

Internal Tensions

Where each work's argument pulls against itself.

Why Not the Best?

Carter's presidency (1977-81) was widely regarded at the time as a political failure; subsequent reassessment has been substantially more positive. His post-presidential work has been continuously admired across political lines. The relation between Carter's evangelical-religious framework and his progressive political positions has been continuously analysed.