Welfare legislation is symbolic : an introduction -- American social welfare policy in context, 1600-1935 -- American social welfare policy in context, 1936-2003 -- "Are we going to now govern by anecdote?" : a portrait of the misfortunate, the feckless, the young, and the fathers -- Legislating a "normal classic family" : the rhetorical construction of families in American welfare policy -- In search of an exigence to warrant reform : public opinion, policy research, and anecdotal evidence -- American welfare policy and the ineluctable appeal of language : conclusion and implications.