In Defence Of The Terror: Liberty Or Death In T... File

The book focuses on the emotions of the revolution —dread, fury, and sacred enthusiasm—arguing that these feelings were the driving force behind political decisions.

Wahnich makes a sharp distinction between the 18th-century "Terror" (a state-led process for sovereignty) and contemporary "terrorism," which she argues aims at neither liberty nor equality. In Defence of the Terror: Liberty or Death in t...

Wahnich suggests the Terror was established to prevent massacres by the populace (like the September Massacres) by transferring the "right of vengeance" to the state. In Danton's words, the state had to "be terrible so as to spare the people the need to be so". The book focuses on the emotions of the

Reviewers praise the book for being a "welcome corrective" to simplistic moral critiques and a "bracing intervention" in political theory. It is noted for its concise and compelling prose. In Danton's words, the state had to "be