Oxford World's Classics: A Lexicon of Terror

Viac o knihe

In la charca, a battalion approaches, ready for war against a schoolhut full of children. The horrors of Argentina's Dirty War are laid bare: tanks roaring over farmlands, pregnant mothers tortured, babies sold on the black market, and ordinary citizens kidnapped and never seen again. Marguerite Feitlowitz exposes the sadism, paranoia, and deception of the military dictatorship, which claimed over 30,000 civilian lives from 1976 to 1983. Recently, warrants for genocide were issued against its leaders by a Spanish court. Feitlowitz delves into the perversion of language under state terrorism, where terms are twisted to conceal the truth. Citizens "disappeared" into secret concentration camps, torture became "intensive therapy," and prisoners thrown from airplanes were labeled "fish food." Drawing on six years of research and interviews with peasants, intellectuals, activists, and bystanders, the work examines the lasting impact of this catastrophic period, highlighting the coexistence of former torturers and their victims. Passionately written, the narrative captures the horror of the war alongside the heroism of those who resisted and survived, showcasing their courage, endurance, and refusal to be dehumanized in the face of unimaginable torments.