The Enemy Within
L’ennemi de l’intérieur
Discourse, Construction and Practices in the United Kingdom and the United States
Discours, construction et pratiques au Royaume-Uni et aux États-Unis
Abstract
In a context of intense polarisation and radicalisation, this event (October 23, 2026, University of Angers) aims to examine how the concept of the ‘enemy within’, though long-standing, has re-emerged with renewed vigour following Donald Trump’s re-election on the one hand and the rise of the far right in the UK on the other. It has now become one of the favourite discursive tools to stigmatise, demonise and marginalise any community or individual that does not fit into the national narrative as shaped by representatives of the US or British far right, thereby contributing to blurring the boundaries between dissent, legitimate opposition and national threat.
Announcement
Research Seminar Day, October 23, 2026, University of Angers
Argument
After examining the issue of polarisation in British and American societies in October 2024, we are continuing our study of the parallels and echoes between the United Kingdom and the United States by with a new one-day conference on the theme: ‘The enemy within: discourse, construction and practices in the United Kingdom and the United States’. In a context of intense polarisation and radicalisation, this event aims to examine how the concept of the ‘enemy within’, though long-standing, has re-emerged with renewed vigour following Donald Trump’s re-election on the one hand and the rise of the far right in the UK on the other (Epps, 2025). It has now become one of the favourite discursive tools to stigmatise, demonise and marginalise any community or individual that does not fit into the national narrative as shaped by representatives of the US or British far right, thereby contributing to blurring the boundaries between dissent, legitimate opposition and national threat.
The concept of the ‘enemy within’ is part of a long history characterised by multiple constructions and reconstructions depending on social, political and geopolitical contexts (Ceyhan & Périès, 2001). In the United Kingdom, the concept gained particular prominence in the 1980s, especially after Margaret Thatcher described the miners’ unions as the ‘enemy within’ during the 1984–1985 strike, framing the social conflict as a form of internal warfare, pitting a legitimate, national ‘us’ against a threatening and dangerous ‘them’ suspected of undermining the foundations of the nation (Milne, 2014). Similar dynamics have been observed in the Northern Irish context or, more recently, in certain discourses targeting Muslim populations and identifying them as the new figures of this ‘enemy within’—intrinsically dangerous, threatening and subversive, and consequently excluded, both symbolically and in practice, from the national belonging (Allen, 2010; Sobolewska & Ford, 2020; Langlois, 2025).
In the United States, this phenomenon is also part of a long history, particularly evident in times of crisis. It was propelled centre stage during the first Red Scare, when socialists, anarchists and communists were identified as internal threats, but also through emergency measures such as the internment of Japanese-Americans following the attack on Pearl Harbor. McCarthyism represents an emblematic moment in this history, marked by practices of public identification and indictment that spectacularly reveal the political construction of the ‘enemy within’ (Paterson, 1988; Goldberg, 2001).
The concept of the ‘enemy within’ thus emerges as a powerful discursive strategy for politicians, drawing on the fear of a ubiquitous and diffuse threat at the very heart of the social and national fabric, thus uniting a ‘us’ against a ‘them’ and thereby strengthening the authority of the state in times of crisis.
The figure of the ‘enemy within’ may, also, appear as a discursive category capable of being redeployed in various contexts, beyond merely institutional frameworks. It circulates amongst political, media and social actors, and can be used to designate both groups perceived as threatening and institutions or elites accused of treason.
In this perspective, Dmitry Chernobrov highlights several contemporary examples, including the labelling of opposition groups as a ‘fifth column’ by authoritarian states, suspicion towards Muslim populations in Western countries, who are perceived as potential terrorists, and the use of the rhetoric of treason to discredit forms of political dissent within Western democracies (Chernobrov, 2019).
This one-day conference therefore aims to analyse the concept of the ‘enemy within’ in its most contemporary form, but also from a historical perspective, in order to examine the various forms this concept has taken in the United Kingdom and the United States across different eras and political/geopolitical contexts to examine the evolution of social, religious and ethnic groups perceived as a threat to the social fabric and national cohesion. The notion of the ‘enemy within’ appears to be particularly revealing of the dynamics of political and social polarisation, insofar as it contributes to the creation of new forms of exclusion. Building on the discussion initiated during the previous seminar on polarisation, this event aims to deepen the analysis of the processes of radicalisation of discourse and the fragmentation of societies, by comparing the British and American cases.
Papers in French or English may focus on the political and media uses of the figure of the internal enemy, on the historical perspectives of the concept, and on its various (re)interpretations. Comparative approaches are also very much welcome. We hope to subsequently publish the papers in book form.
Submission guidelines
Abstracts (approximately 500 words) should be submitted by Friday 10 July 2026 at the latest, accompanied by a short biography, to Laëtitia LANGLOIS, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary British Civilization (laetitia.langlois@univ-angers.fr) Clifford BAVEREL, Senior Lecturer in North American Civilization (clifford.baverel@univ-angers.fr).
Organizing Committee
- Laëtitia LANGLOIS, MCF civilisation britannique contemporaine, Université d’Angers, 3.LAM
- Clifford BAVEREL, MCF civilisation nord-américaine, Université d’Angers, CIRPaLL
Works Cited
Allen, Chris. “Fear and Loathing: The Political Discourse in Relation to Muslims and Islam in the British Contemporary Setting”. Politics and Religion Journal, 4(2), 221-236, 2010.
Ceyhan, Ayse, et Gabriel Périès. « L’ennemi intérieur : une construction discursive et politique ». Cultures & Conflits, no 43, automne 2001.
Chernobrov, Dmitry. “Who is the modern ‘traitor’? ‘Fifth column’ accusations in US and UK politics and media”. Politics, vol. 39, no 3, août 2019, p. 347-362.
Epps, Garrett. “Trump is a Wartime President: The president has met the enemy, and they are us.” Washington Monthly, 27 octobre 2025.
Goldberg, Robert Alan. Enemies Within: The Culture of Conspiracy in Modern America. Yale University Press, 2001.
Langlois, Laetitia. “Nigel Farage’s National Populist Campaign in Favour of Brexit: Early Signs of a Culture War”. In Pierre-Alma Bonnet and Raphaële Kilty (eds.), Towards A Very British Version of the ‘Culture Wars’. Routledge, 2025.
Milne, Seumas. The Enemy Within: The Secret War Against the Miners. Verso Books, 2014.
Paterson, Thomas G. Meeting the Communist Threat: Truman to Reagan. Oxford University Press, 1988.
Sobolewska, Maria and Robert Ford. Brexitland. Identity, Diversity, and the Reshaping of British Politics. Cambridge University Press, 2020.
Places
- Maison de la Recherche Germaine Tillion (MRGT) - 5 boulevard Lavoisier
Angers, France (49000)
Attached files
Keywords
- Internal enemy, Populist discourse, Political polarization, Threat rhetoric, Social fragmentation
Contact(s)
- Clifford BAVEREL
courriel : clifford [dot] baverel [at] univ-angers [dot] fr
License
This announcement is licensed under the terms of Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal.
To cite this announcement
« The Enemy Within », Call for papers, Calenda, Published on Thursday, June 11, 2026, https://doi.org/10.58079/16dlk
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