Full Description
The Cultural Politics of Veterans' Narratives investigates the role of veterans' stories in our collective cultural and political life. Drawing on contemporary narrative theory, it offers a conceptual framework for studying veterans' narratives, followed by a series of unique empirical chapters dealing with different genres of veteran storytelling, including trauma, transition, culture and identity, and the Afghanistan war memoir. The book questions the British veteran as a political figure, exploring what their stories tell us about the morality and politics of war as well as military life. It also traces how social norms about militarism, nationalism, and patriotism pivot as a result. Caddick considers what the stakes are for veterans as their stories interact with wider cultural narratives, and for society in grappling with the 'militarist terms of reference' these stories impart to us.
Contents
Introduction
The cultural politics of veterans' narratives
Britain and 'her veterans' : Narrating the veteran figure
The 'super-citizen' character: Veteran cultures and identities
In failure and success: The politics of transition narratives
Narrative politics and the militarised academy
Intertextual narratives and the war in Afghanistan
Trauma stories, surfing, and undoing the residue of militarism
ConclusionReferences
