Anti-Americanism: History, Causes, Themes [4 volumes]

Why do people hate America and Americans? The essays in Volume One explore various possible causes, such as American multi-national corporations, America's stance on the environment and the promotion of American values abroad. When did anti-American feeling start and how has it changed through history? Volume Two examines key periods from the founding fathers to the Cold War and the War Against Terror. What forms does anti-Americanism take in countries round the world? Volume Three surveys different sorts of anti-American feeling in a range of countries and regions from the Middle East to Latin America, from Western Europe to the Far East, and from Russia to North America itself. Why is anti-Americanism currently so strong? Essays in the fourth volume examine key themes and flashpoints: the 'Bush Doctrine', the Iraq War, the rise of Islamic Fundamentalism, US relations with the UN, and many others. This multi-volume set aims to become the definitive contribution to the field of anti-American studies. Each volume concentrates on a particular theme; each 10,000-word article, written by an international expert, addresses a particular question. Taken together, they deal at length and in depth with a phenomenon which is frequently but unreflectingly mentioned in the media. Many essays explore the contradictions and paradoxes of anti-Americanism - for example the impact of American pop culture, which is consumed at a startling rate around the globe while also remaining a source of much anxiety and criticism. They also look beyond political and national traditions of anti-Americanism (in Socialism or the Environmental Movement, in France and the US itself) and to traditions in literature, foreign cartooning and the tabloid press. The final volume of essays focuses on the contemporary situation, suggesting reasons for the current wave of anti-American feeling, including the policies of George W. Bush, the relentless spread of American business and culture, the American push for democracy (often seen as forced and hypocritical), America's pursuit of a war against Iraq, America's record of supporting dictators and being involved in clandestine wars, and others.

Table of Contents:
Volume 1 :Introduction: Causes and Sources of Anti-Americanism 1. What is Anti-Americanism? 2. The Anti-American Mindset 3. Americanization and Anti-Americanism 4. The Death Penalty, Guns and Anti-Americanism 5. Religion and Anti-Americanism 6. The American Personality and Anti-Americanism 7. The Environment and Anti-Americanism 8. Democracy and Anti-Americanism 9. Bush, the Iraq War and Anti-Americanism 10.The Washington Consensus and Anti-Americanism 11. American Popular Culture and Anti-Americanism 12. Modernity, Resentment and Anti-Americanism Volume 2 :Introduction: Historical Perspectives 1. A History of Anti-Americanism: from Buffon to Bush 2. Schizophrenic Nationalism and Anti-Americanism 3. Philosophic Anti-Americanism 4. Americanism as a Source of Anti-Americanism 5. American Exceptionalism and Anti-Americanism, 6. European anti-Semitism and Anti-Americanism 7. The Cold War and Anti-Americanism 8. The Cultural Cold War and Anti-Americanism 9. The Anti-Vietnam War Movement and Anti-Americanism 10. Race, Nationalism, and Anti-Americanism in America Volume 3 :Introduction: Comparative Perspectives 1. Anti-Americanism and Anglophobia 2. Anti-Americanism and Anti-Globalization 3. Anti-Americanism in Australia 4. Anti-Americanism in Canada 5. Anti-Americanism in Latin America 6. Anti-Americanism in Russia 7. Anti-Americanism in France 8. Anti-Americanism in Germany 9. Anti-Americanism in the United Kingdom 10. Anti-Americanism in Greece 11. Anti-Americanism in China 12. Anti-Americanism in the Philippines 13. Anti-Americanism in the Middle East Volume 4 :Introduction: Blame it on Bush? 1. George W. Bush and Anti-Americanism 2. Anti-Americanism in France and the Crisis over Iraq 3. Anti-Americanism, the West and the Transatlantic Rift 4. The Bush Doctrine and Anti-Americanism 5. Anti-Americanism at the United Nations 6. US Military Bases and Anti-Americanism 7. Global Poverty and Anti-Americanism 8. Human Rights and Anti-Americanism 9. Islamic Fundamentalism, Concerned Muslims and Anti-Americanism 10. Anti-American Heroes and the Rhetoric of Moral Outrage 11. The Consequences of Anti-Americanism: Does it Matter? 12. Responding to Anti-Americanism: The Politics of Public Diplomacy 13. American Power, Anti-Americanism and International Order

About the Author :
Brendon O'Connor is Senior Lecturer in the Department of Politics and Public Policy at Griffith University in Australia. His recent books include: The Rise of Anti-Americanism (co-ed. With M. Griffiths, 2006). In 2003, he received a Fulbright grant to host an international symposium on anti-Americanism.

Review :
A comprehensive look at the phenomenon of anti-Americanism, this set offers contributions from more than 40 scholars in a variety of disciplines. Edited by O'Connor, a well-published political scientist, this work clearly shows that the current wave of anti-Americanism is not without precedent. O'Connor argues that anti-Americanism is often based on prejudice and ideological overtones. Therefore, one of the work's goals is to distinguish between legitimate critiques of US policy and anti-Americanism, thereby creating a more sophisticated discourse. Authors look at anti-Americanism from a variety of perspectives and show that the phenomenon is multifaceted and complex. Overall, the work dispels what O'Connor calls the fallacy that anti-Americanism is a creation of the Bush administration….Readers looking for a comprehensive, scholarly overview of anti-Americanism, covering a variety of issues, will likely be satisfied with this set. It is well written and well footnoted. Recommended. Lower-division undergraduates through faculty. Since 9/11, there has been a relative upsurge in published writing about anti-Americanism. The sources and causes, however, are more complicated than recent terrorist events can explain. These four volumes each consisting of about a dozen substantial scholarly political and cultural arguments and opposing viewpointspresent an objective and balanced exploration of anti-Americanism….The content is as appropriate for assigned class readings as it is for reference consultation. The set would make a valuable addition to any academic library that serves public policy, international relations, or history departments. Understanding how the United States is viewed around the world is a complex topic that most Americans cannot grasp, but this work connects them with the perception….O'Connor and the contributors provide the realization: anti-American sentiment is both a response to the values and beliefs associated with the United States as well as a reaction to perceived American misdeeds or offenses. This engaging collection is an invaluable resource for academics as well as the everyday American. The four volumes presented by O'Connor are intended to demonstrate the scope of the issues raised by the concept of anti-Americanism and to illustrate the nature and variety of the debates and perspectives brought to bear on the topic, especially in its historical dimensions. The volumes, each of which contains some 10 to 13 chapters, are thematically constructed.