Postscript to American Ground: Unbuilding the World Trade Center
American Ground was originally an Atlantic series, and an attempt to respond usefully to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. As it became clear that the magazine was committed to a long and heavily charged project about the deconstruction of the World Trade Center ruins, I wanted to take some emotional distance from the tragedy, and to approach the narrative as if I were looking back on current events from several decades into the future. The result would be, I hoped, like a “history in the present tense.” It was a formulation that came often to mind as I proceeded.
TL;DR
- The author sought emotional distance from the 9/11 tragedy by writing "American Ground" as a "history in the present tense."
- The book focused on the deconstruction of the World Trade Center ruins, not the immediate grief surrounding the event.
- Controversy arose over the book's mention of looting by various groups and its perceived lack of heroic imagery.
- The author believed that maintaining narrative detachment allowed readers to engage with the text personally.
- The book's primary subject was the construction and deconstruction efforts, particularly the leaders involved.
- The author preferred transparency and would have welcomed more press presence at the site.