Heroes and Villains in American Culture, History, and Politics (2025) explores the shifting boundaries between heroism and villainy in American culture, history, politics, and media. Bringing together perspectives from Tunisian and international scholars, the volume examines how individuals, political figures, governments, and nations are represented as heroes, villains, anti-heroes, or victims.
The contributions address a wide range of topics, including Donald Trump, U.S. foreign policy, the Gaza crisis, representations of the White Man, Deadpool, Dick Cheney, George W. Bush, Woodrow Wilson, and the 2024 U.S. presidential elections. Collectively, they challenge the idea that heroism and villainy are fixed categories, demonstrating instead how these identities are shaped by context, political interests, cultural narratives, and changing perspectives.
Published following the TAACS International Conference held at the University of Sousse in November 2024, the volume invites readers to critically reconsider who becomes a hero or a villain—and who has the power to define them as such.
PDF copies of individual chapters are available upon request.
If you would like to read a chapter from the volume, please contact us.