Life between Two Deaths, 1989-2001: U.S. Culture in the Long Nineties (Post-Contemporary Interventions)

Through virtuoso readings of significant works of American film, television, and fiction, Phillip E. Wegner demonstrates that the period between the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 fostered a unique consciousness and represented a moment of immense historical possibilities now at risk of being forgotten in the midst of the “war on terror.” Wegner argues that 9/11 should be understood as a form of what Jacques Lacan called the “second death,” an event that repeats an earlier “fall,” in this instance the collapse of the Berlin Wall. By describing 9/11 as a repetition, Wegner does not deny its significance. Rather, he argues that it was only with the fall of the towers that the symbolic universe of the Cold War was finally destroyed and a true “new world order,” in which the United States assumed disturbing new powers, was put into place.Wegner shows how phenomena including the debate on globalization, neoliberal notions of the end of history, the explosive growth of the Internet, the efflorescence of new architectural and urban planning projects, developments in literary and cultural production, new turns in theory and philosophy, and the rapid growth of the antiglobalization movement came to characterize the long nineties. He offers readings of some of the most interesting cultural texts of the era: Don DeLillo’s __White Noise__; Joe Haldeman’s __Forever__ trilogy; Octavia Butler’s __Parable__ novels; the __Terminator__ films; the movies __Fight Club__, __Independence Day__, __Cape Fear__, and __Ghost Dog__; and the television series __Buffy the Vampire Slayer__. In so doing, he illuminates fundamental issues concerning narrative, such as how beginnings and endings are recognized and how relationships between events are constructed. Through virtuoso readings of significant works of American film, television, and fiction, Phillip E. Wegner demonstrates that the period between the fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 and the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 fostered a unique consciousness and represented a moment of immense historical possibilities now at risk of being forgotten in the midst of the “war on terror.” Wegner argues that 9/11 should be understood as a form of what Jacques Lacan called the “second death,” an event that repeats an earlier “fall,” in this instance the collapse of the Berlin Wall. By describing 9/11 as a repetition, Wegner does not deny its significance. Rather, he argues that it was only with the fall of the towers that the symbolic universe of the Cold War was finally destroyed and a true “new world order,” in which the United States assumed disturbing new powers, was put into place. Wegner shows how phenomena including the debate on globalization, neoliberal notions of the end of history, the explosive growth of the Internet, the efflorescence of new architectural and urban planning projects, developments in literary and cultural production, new turns in theory and philosophy, and the rapid growth of the antiglobalization movement came to characterize the long nineties. He offers readings of some of the most interesting cultural texts of the era: Don DeLillo’s White Noise ; Joe Haldeman’s Forever trilogy; Octavia Butler’s Parable novels; the Terminator films; the movies Fight Club , Independence Day , Cape Fear , and Ghost Dog ; and the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer . In so doing, he illuminates fundamental issues concerning narrative, such as how beginnings and endings are recognized and how relationships between events are constructed. Introduction: the present as a moment of danger The two deaths of the 1990s October 3, 1951, to September 11, 2001 : periodizing the Cold War in Don Delillo's Underworld I'll be back : repetitions and revisions in the Terminator films A fine tradition : the remaking of the United States in Cape Fear Where the prospective horizon is omitted : naturalism, dystopia, and politics in Fight Club and Ghost Dog A nightmare on the brain of the living : Messianic historicity, alienations and Independence Day As many as possible, thinking as much as possible : figures of the multitude In Joe Haldeman's Forever trilogy We're family : monstrous kinships, fidelity, and the event in Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Octavia Butler's parable novels Contents Acknowledgments Introduction the Present as a Moment of Danger One. The Two Deaths of the 1990s Two October 3, 1951 to September 11 , 2001 Three I ’ll Be Back Four A Fine Tradition Five Where the Prospective Horizon Is Omitted Six A Nightmare on the Brain of the Living Seven As Many as Possible , Thinking as Much as Possible Eight We’re Family Notes Bibliography Index An argument that it was only on September 11, 2001, that the symbolic universe of the Cold War was finally destroyed and a new world order put into place.