Chronic Aftershock

The terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 were a local event that nevertheless elicited strong reactions throughout the world. The unprecedented strike on the continental United States, its instantaneous broadcast, and its global stakes placed 9/11 at the centre of ideological debates that still rage today. The impact was especially felt in France.Chronic Aftershock looks at the significance of 9/11 in France as documented by prominent politicians, public intellectuals, journalists, sociologists, political scientists, philosophers, novelists, and conspiracy theorists. In his comprehensive account Jean-Philippe Mathy addresses the rise of a small but influential group of self-described "e;anti-anti-Americans"e; who shared the views of American neoconservatives in support of regime change in Iraq; the media controversy involving French Evangelical churches' response to the religious views of George W. Bush; the widespread "e;I am Charlie"e; movement following the attacks against the offices of Charlie Hebdo; and the unending French national debate on the place of the Muslim community in a secular, universalist republic. The book also considers the November 2015 Islamist attacks in Paris, often described as "e;the French September 11."e;Combining approaches from intellectual history, cultural studies, and literary criticism, Chronic Aftershock explores the legacy of 9/11 and recent instances of transatlantic divide to provide an innovative and timely assessment of the radicalized violence that remains a major threat in today's world.