Barbarism and Its Discontents

Bibliographic Data

ID9327379
AuthorsMaria Boletsi (0000-0003-0152-5127, corresponding author)
Year2013
Publication date2013-01-30
Open AccessYes
TypeBOOK
VenueBarbarism and Its Discontents (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherStanford University Press (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.2307/j.ctvqsdzz7
OpenAlexW4230798387
Open LibraryOL34845257M, OL25367169M
ISBN9780804785372, 9780804782760
LanguageEN
Citations received20

Barbarism and civilization form one of the oldest and most rigid oppositions in Western history. According to this dichotomy, barbarism functions as the negative standard through which "civilization" fosters its self-definition and superiority by labeling others "barbarians." Since the 1990s, and especially since 9/11, these terms have become increasingly popular in Western political and cultural rhetoric—a rhetoric that divides the world into forces of good and evil. This study intervenes in this recent trend and interrogates contemporary and historical uses of barbarism, arguing that barbarism also has a disruptive, insurgent potential. Boletsi recasts barbarism as a productive concept, finding that it is a common thread in works of literature, art, and theory. By dislodging barbarism from its conventional contexts, this book reclaims barbarism's edge and proposes it as a useful theoretical tool

Archaeology · Barbarism · Civilization · Political science · Geology · Global Maritime and Colonial Histories · History

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