Talking Terrorism

"Anarchist," "freedom fighter," "fundamentalist," "terrorist." These words are thrown about today with seeming abandon. But each of these terms, and hundreds like them, have connotations and denotations charged with meanings which can be used strategically by politicians, journalists, and ordinary citizens. Talking Terrorism defines, traces, and explains the loaded, controversial, confusing, and shifting language that surrounds terrorist activity. The dictionary comprises words used to characterize individuals, groups, or countries that commit or support acts of political violence. Also covered is the closely related language that conveys the justifications and agendas of those responding to violence, including these groups' self-characterizations, which might entail the masking of a multitude of sins. In addition, the ways terrorists use language to smear enemies, recruit and inspire group members, and communicate the righteousness of their causes are examined.

PHILIP HERBST is an author and editor whose previous books, The Color of Words and Wimmin, Wimps, and Wallflowers, dealt with how language defines social and political reality. A cultural anthropologist, Herbst has taught at the State University of New York, Potsdam, was a Visiting Scholar in both the Anthropology and the Gender Studies departments at Northwestern University, and has conducted research under the auspices of the National Institutes for Health and the Southern Poverty Law Center.