The idea for Philosophy in a Time of Terror was born hours after the attacks on 9/11 and was realized just weeks
later when Giovanna Borradori sat down with Jürgen Habermas and Jacques Derrida in New York City, in separate
interviews, to evaluate the significance of the most destructive terrorist act ever perpetrated. This book marks
an unprecedented encounter between two of the most influential thinkers of our age as here, for the first time,
Habermas and Derrida overcome their mutual antagonism and agree to appear side by side. As the two philosophers
disassemble and reassemble what we think we know about terrorism, they break from the familiar social and political
rhetoric increasingly polarized between good and evil. In this process, we watch two of the greatest intellects
of the century at work.
Table of Contents
Preface
Philosophy in a Time of Terror
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Terrorism and the Legacy of the Enlightenment--Habermas and Derrida
Part One
Fundamentalism and Terror--A Dialogue with Jürgen Habermas
Reconstructing Terrorism--Habermas
Part Two
Autoimmunity: Real and Symbolic Suicides--A Dialogue with Jacques Derrida
Deconstructing Terrorism--Derrida
