In this wide-ranging book, Paul Hoggett argues that human feelings and identities are constitutive of both personal and political life.

Engaging with major debates in political theory, sociology, and psychoanalysis, he brings fresh insights to a range of issues: dynamics of political protest, intractable conflicts, fundamentalism and populism, the new political charismatics, the nature of forgiveness, and the relationship between anxiety and governance.

The book is conceptually innovative and accessible, carefully introducing different theories of collective emotion and group identity and making extensive use of case studies from the U.S., England, and across the globe.