Mary Douglas
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780199265237
- eISBN:
- 9780191602054
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199265232.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies
Continues the argument advanced in the first chapter on the anxiety of the Pentateuch's priestly editors about the solidarity between Judah and the descendants of Joseph's sons Ephraim and Manasseh. ...
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Continues the argument advanced in the first chapter on the anxiety of the Pentateuch's priestly editors about the solidarity between Judah and the descendants of Joseph's sons Ephraim and Manasseh. It addresses the concept of the Day of Atonement, which in the post‐exilic period was associated with Joseph, and is found in the Book of Jubilees, where the ceremony is described as a sin‐offering of a goat. The different sections of the chapter look at the conflicting meanings attached to the ceremony of the scapegoat (or goats) offering – fraternal reconciliation versus unbrotherly rejection. They discuss: the meaning of the ‘scapegoat’; Greek and Hebrew manifestations of the ceremony; scapegoat rituals around the world, the levitical purification ceremony – including the interpretation of the word Azazal (here viewed as the goat that is chosen to be presented to God alive and is then sent away, in contrast to that chosen as the sacrificial sin‐offering); Aaron's sacrifices of atonement; the need for transfer of the sins of Israel to an animal; the bearing of sin by an animal, the punishment of the sin‐bearing animal by exile; the parallels of the goat rites with the rites of two birds in Leviticus and with the stories of two brothers with uneven destinies (Isaac and Ishmael, and Jacob and Esau) in Genesis; and parallels between the assigning of the scapegoat and the commissioning of the Levites or the commissioning of Joshua by Moses in Numbers. The author argues that not much is left of the idea levitical scapegoating ceremony, and suggests that the priestly editors covered up their deep interest in politics and morals by writing in parables but dramatizing their teaching in vivid rituals.Less
Continues the argument advanced in the first chapter on the anxiety of the Pentateuch's priestly editors about the solidarity between Judah and the descendants of Joseph's sons Ephraim and Manasseh. It addresses the concept of the Day of Atonement, which in the post‐exilic period was associated with Joseph, and is found in the Book of Jubilees, where the ceremony is described as a sin‐offering of a goat. The different sections of the chapter look at the conflicting meanings attached to the ceremony of the scapegoat (or goats) offering – fraternal reconciliation versus unbrotherly rejection. They discuss: the meaning of the ‘scapegoat’; Greek and Hebrew manifestations of the ceremony; scapegoat rituals around the world, the levitical purification ceremony – including the interpretation of the word Azazal (here viewed as the goat that is chosen to be presented to God alive and is then sent away, in contrast to that chosen as the sacrificial sin‐offering); Aaron's sacrifices of atonement; the need for transfer of the sins of Israel to an animal; the bearing of sin by an animal, the punishment of the sin‐bearing animal by exile; the parallels of the goat rites with the rites of two birds in Leviticus and with the stories of two brothers with uneven destinies (Isaac and Ishmael, and Jacob and Esau) in Genesis; and parallels between the assigning of the scapegoat and the commissioning of the Levites or the commissioning of Joshua by Moses in Numbers. The author argues that not much is left of the idea levitical scapegoating ceremony, and suggests that the priestly editors covered up their deep interest in politics and morals by writing in parables but dramatizing their teaching in vivid rituals.
Gary Alan Fine and Bill Ellis
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199736317
- eISBN:
- 9780199866458
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199736317.003.0004
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
Contemporary immigrants who enter the United States to work or settle are assumed to bring with them habits of crime, laziness, and lack of hygiene. This chapter puts these modern rumor cycles into ...
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Contemporary immigrants who enter the United States to work or settle are assumed to bring with them habits of crime, laziness, and lack of hygiene. This chapter puts these modern rumor cycles into historical perspective by examining ways in which these beliefs are based on earlier stereotypes generated by previous immigration waves. They often blamed foreigners for introducing diseases such as leprosy and typhoid fever to the country, just as Mexicans were blamed for the new swine flu epidemic. The literal illness, then as now, symbolized a more subtle threat to the body politic: a new population marked by immorality, sexual promiscuity, and political disloyalty. Particularly, foreigners serve as scapegoats after catastrophes such as fires or floods. Rumor contributed to the creation of an increasingly restrictive immigration policy in the United States, and continues to generate an atmosphere of distrust against newcomers.Less
Contemporary immigrants who enter the United States to work or settle are assumed to bring with them habits of crime, laziness, and lack of hygiene. This chapter puts these modern rumor cycles into historical perspective by examining ways in which these beliefs are based on earlier stereotypes generated by previous immigration waves. They often blamed foreigners for introducing diseases such as leprosy and typhoid fever to the country, just as Mexicans were blamed for the new swine flu epidemic. The literal illness, then as now, symbolized a more subtle threat to the body politic: a new population marked by immorality, sexual promiscuity, and political disloyalty. Particularly, foreigners serve as scapegoats after catastrophes such as fires or floods. Rumor contributed to the creation of an increasingly restrictive immigration policy in the United States, and continues to generate an atmosphere of distrust against newcomers.
Ralph M. Rosen
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195309966
- eISBN:
- 9780199789443
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195309966.003.0003
- Subject:
- Classical Studies, Literary Studies: Classical, Early, and Medieval
This chapter is concerned with how satiric genres of poetry distinguished “blamers” from targets, and how poets enlisted the sympathies of their audiences. The main focus is on the Thersites of ...
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This chapter is concerned with how satiric genres of poetry distinguished “blamers” from targets, and how poets enlisted the sympathies of their audiences. The main focus is on the Thersites of Homer, Iliad 2 who is often regarded as a kind of “proto-satirist”. This chapter, however, urges a more nuanced approach to this formulation: by comparing the Iliadic portrait of Thersites (where Thersites is portrayed as having been justifiably punished) to the stories about his death at the hands of Achilles (a patently unjust act) found in other sources, it argues that the Iliadic Thersites is conceptualized by Homer more as a “target” than an actual satirist. Comparanda discussed in this chapter include Aristophanes' Knights and Aesopic fable.Less
This chapter is concerned with how satiric genres of poetry distinguished “blamers” from targets, and how poets enlisted the sympathies of their audiences. The main focus is on the Thersites of Homer, Iliad 2 who is often regarded as a kind of “proto-satirist”. This chapter, however, urges a more nuanced approach to this formulation: by comparing the Iliadic portrait of Thersites (where Thersites is portrayed as having been justifiably punished) to the stories about his death at the hands of Achilles (a patently unjust act) found in other sources, it argues that the Iliadic Thersites is conceptualized by Homer more as a “target” than an actual satirist. Comparanda discussed in this chapter include Aristophanes' Knights and Aesopic fable.
Frank Graziano
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195136401
- eISBN:
- 9780199835164
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195136403.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, History of Christianity
Discusses how Rose of Lima, on the model of Christ, offered herself as a sacrificial victim to expiate the sins of natives, Spaniards, and Creoles in the New World. Rose of Lima’s patronage is ...
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Discusses how Rose of Lima, on the model of Christ, offered herself as a sacrificial victim to expiate the sins of natives, Spaniards, and Creoles in the New World. Rose of Lima’s patronage is explored in its relations to the Madonna of Mercy and other antecedents.Less
Discusses how Rose of Lima, on the model of Christ, offered herself as a sacrificial victim to expiate the sins of natives, Spaniards, and Creoles in the New World. Rose of Lima’s patronage is explored in its relations to the Madonna of Mercy and other antecedents.
James L. Crenshaw
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- July 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195140026
- eISBN:
- 9780199835607
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195140028.003.0009
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies
In the ancient world, breaches of covenantal loyalty were thought to have been forgiven through substitutionary atonement. This “wiping the slate clean” took several forms: for example, human ...
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In the ancient world, breaches of covenantal loyalty were thought to have been forgiven through substitutionary atonement. This “wiping the slate clean” took several forms: for example, human sacrifice, animal oblations, gifts of wine and cereal, and a ritual involving a scapegoat that carried transferred human guilt into the wilderness. Beyond these, episodic instances of innocents suffering because of other’s folly are recorded such as Jephthah’s daughter’s “immolation” and the death of the first child born to David and Bathsheba. This substitutionary concept reaches its highest point in the suffering servant of Isa 52:12–13 and is echoed in the passion of Jesus.Less
In the ancient world, breaches of covenantal loyalty were thought to have been forgiven through substitutionary atonement. This “wiping the slate clean” took several forms: for example, human sacrifice, animal oblations, gifts of wine and cereal, and a ritual involving a scapegoat that carried transferred human guilt into the wilderness. Beyond these, episodic instances of innocents suffering because of other’s folly are recorded such as Jephthah’s daughter’s “immolation” and the death of the first child born to David and Bathsheba. This substitutionary concept reaches its highest point in the suffering servant of Isa 52:12–13 and is echoed in the passion of Jesus.
Franz Neumann
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691134130
- eISBN:
- 9781400846467
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691134130.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, Military History
This chapter examines the function of anti-Semitism within the framework of the Nazi system. Anti-Semitism had been the most constant single ideology of the Nazi Party, but its understanding was ...
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This chapter examines the function of anti-Semitism within the framework of the Nazi system. Anti-Semitism had been the most constant single ideology of the Nazi Party, but its understanding was impaired by the widely accepted scapegoat theory according to which the Jews were used as scapegoats for all evils of society. The slaughter or the expulsion of the scapegoat, however, marks in mythology the end of a process, while the persecution of the Jews, as practiced by National Socialists, was only the beginning of more horrible things to come. While anti-Semitism had thus been a constant and consistent policy of National Socialism, its manifestations changed considerably from 1933 to 1943. The chapter discusses these changes in anti-Semitic policies in order to gain insights not so much into the fate of the Jews but rather into the structure of the Nazi system.Less
This chapter examines the function of anti-Semitism within the framework of the Nazi system. Anti-Semitism had been the most constant single ideology of the Nazi Party, but its understanding was impaired by the widely accepted scapegoat theory according to which the Jews were used as scapegoats for all evils of society. The slaughter or the expulsion of the scapegoat, however, marks in mythology the end of a process, while the persecution of the Jews, as practiced by National Socialists, was only the beginning of more horrible things to come. While anti-Semitism had thus been a constant and consistent policy of National Socialism, its manifestations changed considerably from 1933 to 1943. The chapter discusses these changes in anti-Semitic policies in order to gain insights not so much into the fate of the Jews but rather into the structure of the Nazi system.
Mary Douglas
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780199244195
- eISBN:
- 9780191600548
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199244197.003.0012
- Subject:
- Religion, Biblical Studies
When the second screen (narrative) in Leviticus has been passed the reader is standing, as it were, inside the holy of holies. This is the apotheosis of the principle of containing forms: Jerusalem ...
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When the second screen (narrative) in Leviticus has been passed the reader is standing, as it were, inside the holy of holies. This is the apotheosis of the principle of containing forms: Jerusalem is the centre of the world, in the centre of Jerusalem is the tabernacle, and in the centre of the tabernacle is the ark of the covenant. The virtual pilgrim with book in hand knows that he has arrived at this hidden place because in Leviticus 26 the Lord God proclaims his covenant no less than eight times (26: 9, 15, 25, 42 (three times), 44, 66). Another elaborate literary construction makes Leviticus 25 and 27 into a massive frame for honouring Leviticus 26, which provides the terms of the covenant itself: strict reciprocity, honourable dealings and simple fairness. This chapter looks at the great proclamation of liberty, where in the innermost, holiest part of the tabernacle, under the shadowing protective wings, the testament of the covenant lies in the coffer, or ark. It then goes on (briefly) to read Leviticus through Genesis on body covering (and the ark of the covenant as another cover), and to offer a new reading, again through Genesis, of the scapegoat ceremony (Leviticus 16) and the scapebird rites for cleansing from leprosy (Leviticus 14).Less
When the second screen (narrative) in Leviticus has been passed the reader is standing, as it were, inside the holy of holies. This is the apotheosis of the principle of containing forms: Jerusalem is the centre of the world, in the centre of Jerusalem is the tabernacle, and in the centre of the tabernacle is the ark of the covenant. The virtual pilgrim with book in hand knows that he has arrived at this hidden place because in Leviticus 26 the Lord God proclaims his covenant no less than eight times (26: 9, 15, 25, 42 (three times), 44, 66). Another elaborate literary construction makes Leviticus 25 and 27 into a massive frame for honouring Leviticus 26, which provides the terms of the covenant itself: strict reciprocity, honourable dealings and simple fairness. This chapter looks at the great proclamation of liberty, where in the innermost, holiest part of the tabernacle, under the shadowing protective wings, the testament of the covenant lies in the coffer, or ark. It then goes on (briefly) to read Leviticus through Genesis on body covering (and the ark of the covenant as another cover), and to offer a new reading, again through Genesis, of the scapegoat ceremony (Leviticus 16) and the scapebird rites for cleansing from leprosy (Leviticus 14).
Ervin Staub
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- January 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195382044
- eISBN:
- 9780199864942
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195382044.003.0010
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
This chapter discusses the harmful psychological consequences of conflict and violence, including changes in the nature of identity and self-concept (both individual and group) of many members of all ...
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This chapter discusses the harmful psychological consequences of conflict and violence, including changes in the nature of identity and self-concept (both individual and group) of many members of all parties. These changes for members of the victimized group (as well as some members of the perpetrator group) often include the experience of post-traumatic distress and psychological woundedness. Survivors also tend to feel vulnerable and to see other people and groups as threatening and dangerous. This can lead them to engage in unnecessary defensive violence. Harm doers increasingly devalue the scapegoated group or ideological enemy, which can lead to them excluding the “other” from the human and moral realm and justifying greater violence. When the violence is stopped, perpetrators usually continue to devalue their victims and defend their actions, in part to defend against guilt, shame, and distress, and to maintain their moral standing in their own eyes and reestablish it in others' eyes.Less
This chapter discusses the harmful psychological consequences of conflict and violence, including changes in the nature of identity and self-concept (both individual and group) of many members of all parties. These changes for members of the victimized group (as well as some members of the perpetrator group) often include the experience of post-traumatic distress and psychological woundedness. Survivors also tend to feel vulnerable and to see other people and groups as threatening and dangerous. This can lead them to engage in unnecessary defensive violence. Harm doers increasingly devalue the scapegoated group or ideological enemy, which can lead to them excluding the “other” from the human and moral realm and justifying greater violence. When the violence is stopped, perpetrators usually continue to devalue their victims and defend their actions, in part to defend against guilt, shame, and distress, and to maintain their moral standing in their own eyes and reestablish it in others' eyes.
Michiel Heyns
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198182702
- eISBN:
- 9780191673870
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198182702.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, 19th-century and Victorian Literature
This book examines the notion that the realist novel reinforces existing social structures through its techniques of representation. It depicts the 19th-century literary scapegoat — the ostensible ...
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This book examines the notion that the realist novel reinforces existing social structures through its techniques of representation. It depicts the 19th-century literary scapegoat — the ostensible victim of the expulsive pressure of plot — as begetter of an alternative vision, questioning the values apparently upheld by the novel as a whole. Novels, like communities, need scapegoats to rid them of their unexpressed anxieties. This has placed the realist novel under suspicion of collaborating with established authority, by reproducing the very structures it often seeks to criticise. This book investigates this charge through close and illuminating readings of five realist novels of the 19th century: Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, Charles Dickens's Our Mutual Friend, George Eliot's Daniel Deronda, Joseph Conrad's Lord Jim, and Henry James's The Golden Bowl. The book looks at these works in relation to one another, to their literary and social contexts, and to modern critical thinking. Sceptical of unexamined abstractions, but appreciative of the acumen of much recent criticism, this book places the realist novel at the centre of current debates, while respecting the power of literature to anticipate the insights of its critics.Less
This book examines the notion that the realist novel reinforces existing social structures through its techniques of representation. It depicts the 19th-century literary scapegoat — the ostensible victim of the expulsive pressure of plot — as begetter of an alternative vision, questioning the values apparently upheld by the novel as a whole. Novels, like communities, need scapegoats to rid them of their unexpressed anxieties. This has placed the realist novel under suspicion of collaborating with established authority, by reproducing the very structures it often seeks to criticise. This book investigates this charge through close and illuminating readings of five realist novels of the 19th century: Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, Charles Dickens's Our Mutual Friend, George Eliot's Daniel Deronda, Joseph Conrad's Lord Jim, and Henry James's The Golden Bowl. The book looks at these works in relation to one another, to their literary and social contexts, and to modern critical thinking. Sceptical of unexamined abstractions, but appreciative of the acumen of much recent criticism, this book places the realist novel at the centre of current debates, while respecting the power of literature to anticipate the insights of its critics.
Michiel Heyns
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198182702
- eISBN:
- 9780191673870
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198182702.003.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, 19th-century and Victorian Literature
This book examines five central realist novels, in relation to one another and other works, hoping to demonstrate both the connectedness and the dissimilarity of the dynamics of novelistic ...
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This book examines five central realist novels, in relation to one another and other works, hoping to demonstrate both the connectedness and the dissimilarity of the dynamics of novelistic representation and the mechanics of social control. These are Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, Charles Dickens's Our Mutual Friend, George Eliot's Daniel Deronda, Joseph Conrad's Lord Jim, and Henry James's The Golden Bowl. Scapegoating is, as René Girard has shown, a mob effect, the mobilisation of the prejudices of a society in times of crisis. If one defines the literary scapegoat as that figure that has to bear the burden of guilt of a particular community, usually by being sacrificed or expelled, then, in the model, the narrative itself constitutes a community, generating pressures that eventually expel those characters that disturb the equilibrium which it is the aim of narrative closure to restore. The book attempts to gauge the pressures generated by narrative to void it of those elements impeding the resolution, but also to record the countervailing resistance of realist representation to the coercion of closure.Less
This book examines five central realist novels, in relation to one another and other works, hoping to demonstrate both the connectedness and the dissimilarity of the dynamics of novelistic representation and the mechanics of social control. These are Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, Charles Dickens's Our Mutual Friend, George Eliot's Daniel Deronda, Joseph Conrad's Lord Jim, and Henry James's The Golden Bowl. Scapegoating is, as René Girard has shown, a mob effect, the mobilisation of the prejudices of a society in times of crisis. If one defines the literary scapegoat as that figure that has to bear the burden of guilt of a particular community, usually by being sacrificed or expelled, then, in the model, the narrative itself constitutes a community, generating pressures that eventually expel those characters that disturb the equilibrium which it is the aim of narrative closure to restore. The book attempts to gauge the pressures generated by narrative to void it of those elements impeding the resolution, but also to record the countervailing resistance of realist representation to the coercion of closure.
Michiel Heyns
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198182702
- eISBN:
- 9780191673870
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198182702.003.0007
- Subject:
- Literature, 19th-century and Victorian Literature
The novel shares with all forms of narrative the potential to structure our desires as well as to reflect a reality assumed to be independent of those desires, and the relative contributions of these ...
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The novel shares with all forms of narrative the potential to structure our desires as well as to reflect a reality assumed to be independent of those desires, and the relative contributions of these two components will vary from narrative to narrative and novel to novel. The realist fiction, in short, is a more versatile creature than is allowed for in the suspicions of some modern critics. It is through this capacity that the novel may help to liberate themselves from their own narratives. Robert Scholes's anti-narrative may in fact be a component of narrative, to the extent that any narrative contains within itself a more or less implicit questioning of its own drift. The literary scapegoat, by one reading the victim of the narrative, is by another the protagonist of the anti-narrative. The narrative confesses its embarrassment by silencing the scapegoat. Unsurprisingly, Joseph Conrad and Henry James are most conscious of this.Less
The novel shares with all forms of narrative the potential to structure our desires as well as to reflect a reality assumed to be independent of those desires, and the relative contributions of these two components will vary from narrative to narrative and novel to novel. The realist fiction, in short, is a more versatile creature than is allowed for in the suspicions of some modern critics. It is through this capacity that the novel may help to liberate themselves from their own narratives. Robert Scholes's anti-narrative may in fact be a component of narrative, to the extent that any narrative contains within itself a more or less implicit questioning of its own drift. The literary scapegoat, by one reading the victim of the narrative, is by another the protagonist of the anti-narrative. The narrative confesses its embarrassment by silencing the scapegoat. Unsurprisingly, Joseph Conrad and Henry James are most conscious of this.
Jonathan H. Ebel
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9780300176704
- eISBN:
- 9780300216356
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300176704.003.0007
- Subject:
- History, Social History
The attacks of September 11, 2001 drew Pat Tillman away from the fame and riches of professional football and into military service. He realized his dream of becoming an army ranger before being ...
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The attacks of September 11, 2001 drew Pat Tillman away from the fame and riches of professional football and into military service. He realized his dream of becoming an army ranger before being killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in April of 2004. This chapter argues against treating the Tillman episode and Pat Tillman himself as exceptional and notes the numerous parallels between commentary on Tillman and his death and ancient scapegoat rituals. From Senator John McCain down to comparatively anonymous bloggers, Americans rendered Tillman’s death meaningful by pronouncing the sins of the nation over his ritually pure soldierly body. The nation thus connected Tillman to G.I. Messiahs past and showed the perseverance of the G.I. Messiah in the present and into the future.Less
The attacks of September 11, 2001 drew Pat Tillman away from the fame and riches of professional football and into military service. He realized his dream of becoming an army ranger before being killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in April of 2004. This chapter argues against treating the Tillman episode and Pat Tillman himself as exceptional and notes the numerous parallels between commentary on Tillman and his death and ancient scapegoat rituals. From Senator John McCain down to comparatively anonymous bloggers, Americans rendered Tillman’s death meaningful by pronouncing the sins of the nation over his ritually pure soldierly body. The nation thus connected Tillman to G.I. Messiahs past and showed the perseverance of the G.I. Messiah in the present and into the future.
Gavin Dingwall and Tim Hillier
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- September 2015
- ISBN:
- 9781447305002
- eISBN:
- 9781447311614
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447305002.001.0001
- Subject:
- Sociology, Law, Crime and Deviance
We live in a society that is increasingly preoccupied with allocating blame: when something goes wrong someone must be to blame. Bringing together philosophical, psychological, and sociological ...
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We live in a society that is increasingly preoccupied with allocating blame: when something goes wrong someone must be to blame. Bringing together philosophical, psychological, and sociological accounts of blame, this is the first detailed socio-legal account of the role of blame in which the authors present a novel study of the legal process of blame attribution, set in the context of criminalisation as a social and political process. The book identifies the problematic and elusive nature of blame and contrasts this with the uncritical way in which it is often used in the criminal justice process. Using a range of examples, the book addresses a number of contemporary issues including moral luck, blame amplification and growing criminalisation. The authors conclude that whilst allocation of blame is often simplistic and arbitrary and reflects little more than the ability of the powerful to coerce the marginalised, deconstructing the process of blame attribution would allow more progressive alternatives to be advanced.Less
We live in a society that is increasingly preoccupied with allocating blame: when something goes wrong someone must be to blame. Bringing together philosophical, psychological, and sociological accounts of blame, this is the first detailed socio-legal account of the role of blame in which the authors present a novel study of the legal process of blame attribution, set in the context of criminalisation as a social and political process. The book identifies the problematic and elusive nature of blame and contrasts this with the uncritical way in which it is often used in the criminal justice process. Using a range of examples, the book addresses a number of contemporary issues including moral luck, blame amplification and growing criminalisation. The authors conclude that whilst allocation of blame is often simplistic and arbitrary and reflects little more than the ability of the powerful to coerce the marginalised, deconstructing the process of blame attribution would allow more progressive alternatives to be advanced.
Mark Smith
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- January 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781447321859
- eISBN:
- 9781447321880
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781447321859.003.0035
- Subject:
- Social Work, Research and Evaluation
Part Four begins with a dedication to Jock Young and a commentary about his work. Part Four’s chapters bring together what might appear to be rather disparate subject matter. Some common themes ...
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Part Four begins with a dedication to Jock Young and a commentary about his work. Part Four’s chapters bring together what might appear to be rather disparate subject matter. Some common themes emerge, however, to provide compelling illustrations of many of the elements of Jock Young’s thesis which is that when societies are in crisis, personal and social unease are displaced onto a scapegoat; scapegoated groups are not chosen by accident, but are closely related to the source of anxiety. Perhaps, the most obvious message in this final Part is that moral panics are likely to erupt around issues of profound moral importance (but also where there is a perceived threat), such as life and death, good and evil, sex (especially when linked with children), the body and an existential threat to cherished beliefs and institutions.Less
Part Four begins with a dedication to Jock Young and a commentary about his work. Part Four’s chapters bring together what might appear to be rather disparate subject matter. Some common themes emerge, however, to provide compelling illustrations of many of the elements of Jock Young’s thesis which is that when societies are in crisis, personal and social unease are displaced onto a scapegoat; scapegoated groups are not chosen by accident, but are closely related to the source of anxiety. Perhaps, the most obvious message in this final Part is that moral panics are likely to erupt around issues of profound moral importance (but also where there is a perceived threat), such as life and death, good and evil, sex (especially when linked with children), the body and an existential threat to cherished beliefs and institutions.
Stephen Greer
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- May 2019
- ISBN:
- 9781526113696
- eISBN:
- 9781526141941
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9781526113696.003.0004
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Media Studies
Framed by an examination of neoliberalism’s emphasis on individual agency – and claims that feminism is no longer needed or relevant – this chapter animates the figure of the killjoy to explore solo ...
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Framed by an examination of neoliberalism’s emphasis on individual agency – and claims that feminism is no longer needed or relevant – this chapter animates the figure of the killjoy to explore solo works in which public displays of unhappiness, dysphoria and ingratitude force a re-examination of the relationship between gender, individual responsibility, and the social. If the killjoy is imagined to spoil everyone else’s good time, it is only because they draw attention to the bad faith social contracts – exemplified and exaggerated by the politics of austerity – which oblige some but not all to practice self-sacrifice in the name of a greater social good.
Featured practitioners: Bridget Christie, Ursula Martinez, Adrienne Truscott, La Ribot, Cristian Ceresoli and Silvia Gallerano, Gary Owen.Less
Framed by an examination of neoliberalism’s emphasis on individual agency – and claims that feminism is no longer needed or relevant – this chapter animates the figure of the killjoy to explore solo works in which public displays of unhappiness, dysphoria and ingratitude force a re-examination of the relationship between gender, individual responsibility, and the social. If the killjoy is imagined to spoil everyone else’s good time, it is only because they draw attention to the bad faith social contracts – exemplified and exaggerated by the politics of austerity – which oblige some but not all to practice self-sacrifice in the name of a greater social good.
Featured practitioners: Bridget Christie, Ursula Martinez, Adrienne Truscott, La Ribot, Cristian Ceresoli and Silvia Gallerano, Gary Owen.
Alex Houen and Jan-Melissa Schramm (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- August 2018
- ISBN:
- 9780198806516
- eISBN:
- 9780191844126
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/oso/9780198806516.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, World Literature
Sacrifice and Modern War Literature is the first book to explore how writers from the early nineteenth century to the present have addressed the intimacy of sacrifice and war. It has been common for ...
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Sacrifice and Modern War Literature is the first book to explore how writers from the early nineteenth century to the present have addressed the intimacy of sacrifice and war. It has been common for critics to argue that after the First World War many of the cultural and religious values associated with sacrifice have been increasingly rejected by writers and others. As the contributors to this volume show, though, literature has continued to address how different conceptions of sacrifice have been invoked in times of war to convert losses into gains or ideals. While those conceptions have sometimes been rooted in a secular rationalism that values lost lives in terms of political or national victories, spiritual and religious conceptions of sacrifice are also still in evidence—as with the ‘martyrdom operations’ of jihadis fighting against the ‘war on terror’. The volume’s fifteen chapters each present fresh insights into the literature of a particular conflict. Most of the authors discussed are major war writers (e.g. Wordsworth, Kipling, Ford Madox Ford, Elizabeth Bowen), but important writers who have received less critical attention are also featured (e.g. Dora Sigerson, Richard Aldington, Thomas Kinsella, Nadeem Aslam). Discussion ranges across a variety of genres: predominantly novels and poetry (particularly elegy and lyric), but also memoirs and some films. The range of literature examined complements the rich array of topics related to wartime sacrifice that the contributors discuss—including scapegoating, martyrdom, religious faith, tragedy, heroism, altruism, ‘bare life’, atonement, and redemption.Less
Sacrifice and Modern War Literature is the first book to explore how writers from the early nineteenth century to the present have addressed the intimacy of sacrifice and war. It has been common for critics to argue that after the First World War many of the cultural and religious values associated with sacrifice have been increasingly rejected by writers and others. As the contributors to this volume show, though, literature has continued to address how different conceptions of sacrifice have been invoked in times of war to convert losses into gains or ideals. While those conceptions have sometimes been rooted in a secular rationalism that values lost lives in terms of political or national victories, spiritual and religious conceptions of sacrifice are also still in evidence—as with the ‘martyrdom operations’ of jihadis fighting against the ‘war on terror’. The volume’s fifteen chapters each present fresh insights into the literature of a particular conflict. Most of the authors discussed are major war writers (e.g. Wordsworth, Kipling, Ford Madox Ford, Elizabeth Bowen), but important writers who have received less critical attention are also featured (e.g. Dora Sigerson, Richard Aldington, Thomas Kinsella, Nadeem Aslam). Discussion ranges across a variety of genres: predominantly novels and poetry (particularly elegy and lyric), but also memoirs and some films. The range of literature examined complements the rich array of topics related to wartime sacrifice that the contributors discuss—including scapegoating, martyrdom, religious faith, tragedy, heroism, altruism, ‘bare life’, atonement, and redemption.
Leonard S. Newman and Ralph Erber (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195133622
- eISBN:
- 9780199847952
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195133622.001.0001
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
When and why do groups target each other for extermination? How do seemingly normal people become participants in genocide? Why do some individuals come to the rescue of members of targeted groups, ...
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When and why do groups target each other for extermination? How do seemingly normal people become participants in genocide? Why do some individuals come to the rescue of members of targeted groups, while others just passively observe their victimization? And how do perpetrators and bystanders later come to terms with the choices that they made? In this book — the first collection of essays representing social psychological perspectives on genocide and the Holocaust — prominent social psychologists use the principles derived from contemporary research in their field to try to shed light on the behavior of the perpetrators of genocide. The primary focus of this volume is on the Holocaust, but the conclusions reached have relevance for attempts to understand any episode of mass killing. Among the topics covered are how crises and difficult life conditions might set the stage for violent intergroup conflict; why some groups are more likely than others to be selected as scapegoats; how certain cultural values and beliefs could facilitate the initiation of genocide; the roles of conformity and obedience to authority in shaping behavior; how engaging in violent behavior makes it easier to for one to aggress again; the evidence for a “genocide-prone” personality; and how perpetrators deceive themselves about what they have done. The book seeks to provide the reader with new ways of making sense of the horrors of genocide and to provide at least some of the knowledge needed to anticipate and prevent future such tragic episodes.Less
When and why do groups target each other for extermination? How do seemingly normal people become participants in genocide? Why do some individuals come to the rescue of members of targeted groups, while others just passively observe their victimization? And how do perpetrators and bystanders later come to terms with the choices that they made? In this book — the first collection of essays representing social psychological perspectives on genocide and the Holocaust — prominent social psychologists use the principles derived from contemporary research in their field to try to shed light on the behavior of the perpetrators of genocide. The primary focus of this volume is on the Holocaust, but the conclusions reached have relevance for attempts to understand any episode of mass killing. Among the topics covered are how crises and difficult life conditions might set the stage for violent intergroup conflict; why some groups are more likely than others to be selected as scapegoats; how certain cultural values and beliefs could facilitate the initiation of genocide; the roles of conformity and obedience to authority in shaping behavior; how engaging in violent behavior makes it easier to for one to aggress again; the evidence for a “genocide-prone” personality; and how perpetrators deceive themselves about what they have done. The book seeks to provide the reader with new ways of making sense of the horrors of genocide and to provide at least some of the knowledge needed to anticipate and prevent future such tragic episodes.
Burnett Bolloten
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- May 2016
- ISBN:
- 9781469624464
- eISBN:
- 9781469624488
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/northcarolina/9781469624464.003.0065
- Subject:
- History, European Modern History
This chapter considers another angle to the decision to end continued resistance. As the previous chapter noted, Negrín was not unaware of Casado's conspiracy against him, though he allowed it to ...
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This chapter considers another angle to the decision to end continued resistance. As the previous chapter noted, Negrín was not unaware of Casado's conspiracy against him, though he allowed it to continue on the grounds of a general sense of disillusionment among the PCE, among other things. For various pragmatic reasons, and given the futility of further resistance, Casado decided that he might as well proceed on his own to tackle the difficulties of negotiating with Franco, and spare the Communists any further trouble. However, his handling of the Casado situation would eventually be used to paint Negrín as a scapegoat, as it could easily be perceived by many as a selfish and cowardly act.Less
This chapter considers another angle to the decision to end continued resistance. As the previous chapter noted, Negrín was not unaware of Casado's conspiracy against him, though he allowed it to continue on the grounds of a general sense of disillusionment among the PCE, among other things. For various pragmatic reasons, and given the futility of further resistance, Casado decided that he might as well proceed on his own to tackle the difficulties of negotiating with Franco, and spare the Communists any further trouble. However, his handling of the Casado situation would eventually be used to paint Negrín as a scapegoat, as it could easily be perceived by many as a selfish and cowardly act.
Leonard S. Newman and Ralph Erber
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780195133622
- eISBN:
- 9780199847952
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195133622.003.0015
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
No analysis of the Holocaust, no matter how compelling, could possibly “normalize” it. Contemplation of genocide and similar atrocities can be a devastating experience, no matter how extensively one ...
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No analysis of the Holocaust, no matter how compelling, could possibly “normalize” it. Contemplation of genocide and similar atrocities can be a devastating experience, no matter how extensively one understands the conditions that set the stage for one group to target another for extermination, and no matter how deeply one has thought about the processes that turn individuals into perpetrators. It is the job of social and behavioral scientists to at least attempt to make sense of this form of collective human behavior at the extremes. This book has shown that genocide is historically associated with crisis, fear, and threat; that crisis, fear, and threat can lead to the targeting of scapegoats; that some cultural values more than others might lend themselves to genocide; that people's behavior is often a function of obedience and conformity; that bystanders to violence and cruelty are often passive; that perpetrators resort to lying and self-deception about what they have done.Less
No analysis of the Holocaust, no matter how compelling, could possibly “normalize” it. Contemplation of genocide and similar atrocities can be a devastating experience, no matter how extensively one understands the conditions that set the stage for one group to target another for extermination, and no matter how deeply one has thought about the processes that turn individuals into perpetrators. It is the job of social and behavioral scientists to at least attempt to make sense of this form of collective human behavior at the extremes. This book has shown that genocide is historically associated with crisis, fear, and threat; that crisis, fear, and threat can lead to the targeting of scapegoats; that some cultural values more than others might lend themselves to genocide; that people's behavior is often a function of obedience and conformity; that bystanders to violence and cruelty are often passive; that perpetrators resort to lying and self-deception about what they have done.
Stephen Eric Bronner
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- January 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780300162516
- eISBN:
- 9780300163735
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300162516.003.0002
- Subject:
- Sociology, Race and Ethnicity
This chapter examines how the bigot manipulates myths and mythological thinking to serve his material and existential purposes. It argues that myths appeal to the bigot because he can easily adapt ...
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This chapter examines how the bigot manipulates myths and mythological thinking to serve his material and existential purposes. It argues that myths appeal to the bigot because he can easily adapt them to his self-serving outlook, that he employs stereotypes and double standards to justify his actions, that he resorts to conspiracy fetishism as a substitute for analysis, and that he is always susceptible to fanaticism. It also explains how the bigot's conspiracy fetishism is fueled by paranoia and projection, allowing him to feel justified in doing himself what he believes that the target of his hatred is doing. Finally, the chapter describes how mythological thinking builds the scapegoat into the bigot's conceptual apparatus from the start, this scapegoat being a construct of his prejudice.Less
This chapter examines how the bigot manipulates myths and mythological thinking to serve his material and existential purposes. It argues that myths appeal to the bigot because he can easily adapt them to his self-serving outlook, that he employs stereotypes and double standards to justify his actions, that he resorts to conspiracy fetishism as a substitute for analysis, and that he is always susceptible to fanaticism. It also explains how the bigot's conspiracy fetishism is fueled by paranoia and projection, allowing him to feel justified in doing himself what he believes that the target of his hatred is doing. Finally, the chapter describes how mythological thinking builds the scapegoat into the bigot's conceptual apparatus from the start, this scapegoat being a construct of his prejudice.
