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Post-9/11 literature and entertainment

When analyzing literature from the early half of the 20th century, there are clear changes in writers before and after the World Wars. The biggest shift came after the Great War, as this was the first war of this scale, with such a large body count, and with new technologies and conventions.

Now that we are coming up on 15 years after 9/11, I suspect we can see a shift in pop culture following the attack on the Twin Towers, and analyze what the shift was, how it affected each medium, and how long the shit remained.

There were works created specifically in response to the attack, including Bruce Springsteen’s The Rising as well as Frank Miller’s controversial follow-up to the Dark Knight Returns: The Dark Knight Strikes Again (at least in part as stated in Miller’s forward to the Dark Knight Saga hardcover).Other works that were written before the attacks were deeply patriotic were brought back into the pop culture, notably Proud to be an American.

Examine pop culture before the attacks (late 90’s-mid 2001), immediately after the attacks (late 2001-2002), a couple years after *2003-2005), 5-10 years after (2006-2011), and contemporary works.

  • Something to look at for this might be ABC's new series Quantico, which centers around solving the mystery of a terrorist attack in New York City, and even features a character whose family was impacted by 9/11. It might also be interesting to look at how terrorism as a plot point has grown in entertainment (SVU, Criminal Minds, etc.) Interesting topic for sure. – MichelleAjodah 8 years ago
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  • Since Batman was mentioned, I think looking at Nolan's trilogy, especially in comparison to older Batman films, would be important, especially since The Dark Knight is essentially a grim crime drama that deals with the law, corruption (bought officers, Dent's transformation), and the Joker's terrorism, which is meant to cause instability. – Emily Deibler 8 years ago
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  • There is a surprising lack of critical thinking in movies and literature regarding aspects of 9/11. Perhaps too soon? – Munjeera 8 years ago
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