Books vs bombs? Humanitarian development and the narrative of terror in Northern Pakistan.
Third World Q
; 31(4): 541-59, 2010.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-20607902
ABSTRACT
This article examines the role of humanitarian discourse and development in reconfiguring the contemporary culture of empire and its war on terror. It takes as its point of entry the immensely popular biographical tale, Three Cups of Tea, which details how the American mountaineer Greg Mortenson has struggled to counter terrorism in Northern Pakistan through the creation of schools. Even as this text appears to provide a self-critical and humane perspective on terrorism, the article argues that it constructs a misleading narrative of terror in which the realities of Northern Pakistan and Muslim life-worlds are distorted through simplistic tropes of ignorance, backwardness and extremism, while histories of US geopolitics and violence are erased. The text has further facilitated the emergence of a participatory militarism, whereby humanitarian work helps to reinvent the military as a culturally sensitive and caring institution in order to justify and service the project of empire.
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Instituciones Académicas
/
Cambio Social
/
Violencia
/
Voluntarios
/
Guerra
/
Características Culturales
/
Islamismo
Aspecto:
Determinantes_sociais_saude
País/Región como asunto:
Asia
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Third World Q
Año:
2010
Tipo del documento:
Article
Pais de publicación:
ENGLAND
/
ESCOCIA
/
GB
/
GREAT BRITAIN
/
INGLATERRA
/
REINO UNIDO
/
SCOTLAND
/
UK
/
UNITED KINGDOM