A Troubled Sleep

Risk and Resilience in Contemporary Northern Ireland

James Waller

Analyzes Northern Ireland's current vulnerabilities, and points of resilience, as an allegedly "post-conflict" society
Features rich, original, primary source material that brings the lived experiences to a evidence-based analysis of risk and resilience in contemporary Northern Ireland
Draws on extended ethnographic fieldwork in contemporary Northern Ireland, showcasing the landscapes and soundscapes, murals and memorials, commemorations and parades, neighborhoods and rituals, food and humor, sport and folklore, and the everyday rhythm of life in a post-conflict society

A Troubled Sleep

Risk and Resilience in Contemporary Northern Ireland

James Waller

Description

In contemporary Northern Ireland, more than two decades after the peace agreement that ended the thirty-year sectarian violence known as "the Troubles" the risk of a return to violent conflict is not only present but growing.

Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork, comparative research, and over 110 hours of face-to-face interviews with a diverse range of political, academic, civil society, and community actors across Northern Ireland, A Troubled Sleep revisits one of the world's most deeply divided societies to analyze Northern Ireland's current vulnerabilities, and points of resilience, as an allegedly "post-conflict" society. By examining the Northern Ireland example, Waller presents deep insight into what happens when identity politics prevail over democracy, when a paralysis in governance leads to a political vacuum for extremist voices to exploit, when de facto social segregation becomes normalized, when acclimatization to violence becomes a generational legacy, and when questions of who we are become secondary to who we are not.

A Troubled Sleep

Risk and Resilience in Contemporary Northern Ireland

James Waller

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction: A Brutal Duality

Part I - Wounded Identities

Chapter 1: "You're One or the Other:" Social Identities in Deeply Divided Societies
Chapter 2: "Two Eyes on the Past:" Northern Ireland's Wounded History

Part II - Risk and Resilience in Contemporary Northern Ireland
Understanding Risk and Resilience
Chapter 3: "Was There Ever A Before?" The Tyranny of Memory
Chapter 4: "With Deep Regret and Reluctance:" Governance in a Deeply Divided Society
Chapter 5: "The Walls Entered Into Our Souls:" Social Fragmentation in Everyday Life

Part III - A Troubled Sleep
Chapter 6: "A Farewell to Peace?:" Escalating Risk and Fading Resilience
Conclusion: "I Hope It Wasn't All a Waste:" Northern Ireland At Its Centenary

Endmatter

Index

A Troubled Sleep

Risk and Resilience in Contemporary Northern Ireland

James Waller

Author Information

James Waller is Cohen Professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies, and chair of that same department, at Keene State College (NH-US). He is the author of five books, most notably Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing and Confronting Evil: Engaging Our Responsibility to Prevent Genocide. Waller has held numerous visiting professorships, most recently as an honorary visiting research professor in the George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Justice and Security at Queen's University in Belfast, Northern Ireland (2017), as well as participating in policymaking and diplomatic efforts to prevent and respond to genocide and violent conflict. In 2017, he was the inaugural recipient of the Engaged Scholarship Prize from the International Association of Genocide Scholars in recognition of his exemplary engagement in advancing genocide awareness and prevention.

A Troubled Sleep

Risk and Resilience in Contemporary Northern Ireland

James Waller

Reviews and Awards

"A Troubled Sleep is both a model for scholarship on contemporary issues and a gloomy forecast for the future of Northern Ireland. Waller brings immense scholarly skill to his effort to assess where the road ahead in Northern Ireland may lead ... There is a great deal of substance here, but Waller writes clearly, and one never feels bogged down by the complexities of Northern Ireland." -- W. H. Mulligan Jr., CHOICE