| TEXT ONLY | ||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Introduction » |
|
Joanna Bourke's last book, An Intimate History of Killing, outraged some people by claiming that many soldiers, including British troops, have actively enjoyed wounding and killing the enemy. In Fear: A Cultural History, she ranges energetically across history to show how people's fears have varied according to their culture and times, but bear little relation to genuine levels of risk. So our current profound fears, for example – of social breakdown, terrorism and environmental disaster – are no more logical than the Victorians' terror of being buried alive. Fear: A Cultural History becomes as provocative as its predecessor when Bourke goes on to analyse how our fears can be manipulated by vested interests. |
|
 Joanna Bourke's new offering is set to create as big a stir as her last, An Intimate History of Killing |
|
 |