“God Sent Me an Army:” Preppers, Faith, and the Ethos of Care in Western North Carolina.

In 2012, National Geographic released their infamous television series, Doomsday Preppers, which portrayed Preppers as sensational, absurd, and apathetic. Across 54 episodes, Preppers were caricatured as hypermasculine individuals eager to enact apocalyptic fantasies. This thesis challenges dominant depictions of Preppers through direct ethnographic research, arguing that the Prepper community is instead grounded in an ethos of care. The ethos of care reflects how Preppers cultivate relationships, support their communities, and pursue preparedness as a form of self-improvement. Within this ethos of care, I examine various important topics, from religion and spirituality to discussions of boundedness and inter-community violence. In addressing a lacuna in existing scholarship, this thesis examines the broad philosophies that shape preparedness, moving beyond apocalyptic rhetoric into complex moral economies.