Reaction Formations: The Subject of Ethnonationalism

The new right has coalesced around the world, combining nativist, right-populist, alt-right, and neofascist ideologies. They have moved from decorum to transgression, from conservative propriety to the frank sexualization of political figures and positions, and from appealing to the conscious normalcy of the "silent majority" to recasting themselves as a protest movement of and for the aggrieved. This volume examines the new rights' cultural politics, including their appropriations of strategies of minoritarian resistance, critique in the face of adversaries, heightened forms of militarism, incarceration, censorship, and inequality, and the temporality of ethnonationalism. Contributors offer critical accounts of contemporary ethnonationalist cultural politics and draw out counterstrategies for anti-fascist resistance.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 368 pages
Publication date: 04 July 2023
Publisher: Fordham University Press

Today, a new international right has emerged, characterized by various labels such as nativist, right-populist, alt-right, and neofascist. Far-right movements in numerous countries have achieved electoral victories that were once deemed highly improbable, and they have also developed a distinct cultural politics. These movements have adopted tactics from the left, moving from decorum to transgression, from conservative propriety to the frank sexualization of political figures and positions, and from appealing to the conscious normalcy of the "silent majority" to recasting themselves as a protest movement of and for the aggrieved. While these movements share a mandate for robust nationalism, they also cultivate a striking international solidarity.

This volume seeks to address aspects of the new right's cultural politics that raise new and urgent questions. How should we assess the disconcerting appropriations of strategies of minoritarian resistance by the new rights? How can we practice critique in the face of adversaries who claim to practice a critique of their own? How do seemingly post-normative versions of nationalism give rise to heightened forms of militarism, incarceration, censorship, and inequality? How should we understand the temporality of ethnonationalism, which combines a romance with archaic tradition, an ethos of disruption driven by tech futurism frequently tinged with accelerationist pathos, and a kitschy nostalgia for a hazily defined recent past, when things were "greater" than they are now?

Surveying nationalisms from Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Israel-Palestine, the United Kingdom, and the United States, Reaction Formations provides a critical account of these movements. By examining the ways in which the new right has appropriated and transformed cultural symbols, practices, and narratives, the book offers a timely and insightful analysis of the evolving political landscape. It sheds light on the challenges and opportunities faced by those who seek to navigate the complex terrain of contemporary nationalism and its cultural implications.

Weight: 566g
Dimension: 152 x 229 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781531503147