marxandphilosophy.org.uk‘Disavowal’ by Alenka Zupančič reviewed by Christopher WillardIn Disavowal, Alenka Zupančič, Slovenian philosopher and psychoanalytic theorist, considers a contemporary social response to traumatic events that takes the form of disavowal. Instead of simply denying the events, disavowal takes form, ‘I know well, but all the same.’ The traumatic event is fully acknowledged but through this fetishist disavowal, resultant anxiety is relieved and responsibility to help effect change is suspended. For Zupančič, fetishist disavowal is a ubiquitous response to traumatic events today, from climate change to economic inequity to conspiracy theories. How disavowal operates in various forms is the subject of this commendable book. An early investigation of…