
Fear of Small Numbers: An Essay on the Geography of Anger
Arjun Appadurai
Fear of Small Numbers is Arjun Appadurai’s answer to that question. A leading theorist of globalization, Appadurai turns his attention to the complex dynamics fueling large-scale, culturally motivated violence, from the genocides that racked Eastern Europe, Rwanda, and India in the early 1990s to the contemporary “war on terror.” Providing a conceptually innovative framework for understanding sources of global violence, he describes how the nation-state has grown ambivalent about minorities at the same time that minorities, because of global communication technologies and migration flows, increasingly see themselves as parts of powerful global majorities. By exacerbating the inequalities produced by globalization, the volatile, slippery relationship between majorities and minorities foments the desire to eradicate cultural difference.
Appadurai analyzes the darker side of globalization: suicide bombings; anti-Americanism; the surplus of rage manifest in televised beheadings; the clash of global ideologies; and the difficulties that flexible, cellular organizations such as Al-Qaeda present to centralized, “vertebrate” structures such as national governments. Powerful, provocative, and timely, Fear of Small Numbers is a thoughtful invitation to rethink what violence is in an age of globalization.
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About Arjun Appadurai
Reviews for Fear of Small Numbers: An Essay on the Geography of Anger
Michelle Ruth Gamburd
American Anthropologist
“Fear of Small Numbers will appeal to a sophisticated audience of professionals and college students, and the essay format makes it accessible to a general adult reading audience. . . . This book does stand out in the literature on globalization in developing and applying explanations for the behavior of key actors.”
Michael A. Morris
Perspectives on Political Science
“Appadurai’s Fear of Small Numbers is an important contribution to the study of one of the most harmful aspects of modernity, violence against minorities. . . . “[It is] groundbreaking both for social theory and for political action. Even its questionable assertions inspire reflection on important issues. I highly recommend this book to all people interested in the fate of the contemporary world.”
Laura Pearl
Comparative Studies in Society and History
“Appadurai’s book is full of powerful insights both about globalization and about modern communal violence, especially in South Asia.”
Kwame Anthony Appiah
Common Knowledge
“Due to its provocative character, the 137 pages of Appadurai's essay make it an excellent starting point for generating ideas for term papers in classes on globalization, genocide, ethnocide, or terrorism. Appadurai's clear, stylish writing means that even lower division undergraduates should have little difficulty generating thoughtful theses from this rich text.”
Brien Hallett
Peace & Change