Divided by Terror: American Patriotism after 9/11 by John Bodnar (review)

Reviewed by: Divided by Terror: American Patriotism after 9/11 by John Bodnar Denise Lynn Divided by Terror: American Patriotism after 9/11 By John Bodnar (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2021. Pp. 318. Notes, bibliography, index. Clothbound, $34.95; paperbound $27.95; e-book $19.99.) Indiana University professor emeritus John Bodnar engages recent history in Divided by Terror. He particularly focuses on conceptions of patriotism since the September 11 attacks. He argues that, rather than inspiring unity and solidarity against terrorism, the attacks and the subsequent [End Page 86] Afghanistan and Iraq wars fomented greater internal division and inspired questions about patriotism itself. He centers two forms of patriotism that he dates back to the Civil War: the first, war-based, has often purported to be the only and most relevant, focusing on supporting U.S. military power and its ubiquity across the globe. Bodnar claims that it is dependent on death, destruction, and above all "erasing the tragic sensibility from the experience of war itself" (p. 3). In contrast, empathetic patriotism undermines viewing war as a glorious and righteous adventure and instead focuses on suffering, death, and destruction. Bodnar argues that the horrors and losses of the twentieth century meant that militant patriotism no longer had a hold as it once did. Americans increasingly questioned the U.S. military's nobility, or what has been called America's civil religion—that its military incursions were ordained by God. In the wake of the 9/11 attacks, patriotism was high, expressed in the display of flags across the country. It was accompanied by severe Islamophobia and a general disdain for both immigrants and Americans who refused to participate in war-based patriotism. George W. Bush and other administration officials capitalized on these sentiments to downplay what led to the attacks and the suffering that followed U.S. incursions, first into Afghanistan and then into Iraq. Bodnar argues that the American tendency to memorialize war has contributed to the production of myths that U.S. military actions are righteous. Memorials that center human suffering and reflect empathetic patriotism challenge this mythmaking, ignite controversy, and invite accusations of anti-Americanism. Intense conflict arose over planning the Ground Zero memorial. Business interests wanted to preserve the valuable real estate where the World Trade Center buildings once stood, while victims' families and New York residents saw it as an important historic location. Conservatives feared challenges to a perceived U.S. supremacy, so ensured that the memorial at Ground Zero did not mention the attacks, why they happened, nor what happened in the days and years afterwards. The controversy revealed that collective memory is rarely collective, nor is it necessarily grounded in truth. It is about what we choose to remember and how we choose to remember it, and, as Bodnar demonstrates, who possesses the power to decide. The invasion of Iraq precipitated the erosion of war-based patriotism, especially as its supporters worked to silence critics. Americans increasingly pushed to find a quick exit as the war ground on, its cost soared, and its brutality was revealed. The internet and availability of contrary narratives challenged the official story and facilitated the shift in public opinion. Hollywood blockbusters often depicted the soldier's struggle but did not question policy. Documentaries, on the other hand, took issue with Bush administration policies and questioned the rationale [End Page 87] for war. Islamophobic attacks across the country also prompted a growing concern about racist violence. While Bodnar highlights two expressions of patriotism, there is no doubt that greater nuance exists. He notes that some Americans were primed to doubt the government's intentions after decades in which the U.S. military's deeds revealed the nation-state's antidemocratic global agenda. Unanswered is the question: did war-based patriotism feed the ascendance of the self-described superpatriots of today who have embraced nativism as essential to patriotism? This book presents history within the living memory of its readers, many of whom, like me, did not see their own response to 9/11 within its analysis. Nevertheless, it is an early and useful contribution to understanding how we memorialize and engage with our nation's...