This volume develops the theory of cultural trauma, a key research program in the Strong Program of Cultural Sociology. In regard to the shattering potential effects of political assassinations, Eyerman examines such effects on political and social life in three different national contexts: Martin Luther King, Bobby Kennedy, and Harvey Milk in the U.S.; Theo van Gogh in the Netherlands; and Olof Palme and Anna Lindh in Sweden.

This volume develops the theory of cultural trauma, a key research program in the Strong Program of Cultural Sociology. In regard to the shattering potential effects of political assassinations, Eyerman examines such effects on political and social life in three different national contexts: Martin Luther King, Bobby Kennedy, and Harvey Milk in the U.S.; Theo van Gogh in the Netherlands; and Olof Palme and Anna Lindh in Sweden.