I wrote this book whilst I was co-director and then director of the Institute for Women’s Studies at Lancaster University between 2000 and 2003. Thanks to all colleagues and students at Lancaster who helped me stay motivated during a challenging time, especially: Jackie Stacey (who shared the directorship with me for two years, and did much more than lighten the load); Rosemary Betterton; Claudia Castañeda; Alison Easton; Anne-Marie Fortier; Gerry Harris; Maureen McNeil; Lynne Pearce; Celia Roberts; Mimi Sheller; Vicky Singleton; Elaine Swan and Imogen Tyler. Thanks to Lauren Berlant whose visits to Lancaster generated much debate about ‘feelings in public’, from which I have greatly benefited. Thanks to Janet Hartley and Sandra Irving for continual and good-humoured support. My appreciation to Yuko Ogawo who gave me wonderful assistance in the preparation of the final manuscript and to Sarah Franklin, Nicole Vittelone, and Mimi Sheller who offered really helpful feedback on an earlier draft. Thanks to Jackie Jones for her excellent editorial advice throughout and her patience towards the end of the project. And my appreciation to Martha Elisa Bojórquez for kindly giving permission to use her beautiful art work for the cover. I have been lucky to edit the book whilst on study leave in Australia. Thanks to the Arts and Humanities Research Board who funded this leave. I am very grateful to Elspeth Probyn and staff and students in the Department of Gender Studies, Sydney University, for providing such a stimulating environment in which to work. Thanks to my family, for being nearby in this past year, and for living under the sun. A special thanks to Sarah Franklin and Imogen Tyler for helping me change directions more than once. Earlier versions of chapters have appeared as follows, and I thank publishers for permission to reprint here:(2001)‘The Organisation of Hate’in Law and Critique 13 (3): 345–65, with kind permission of Kluwer Academic Publishers;(2002)‘Contingency of Pain’in Parallax 8 (1): 17–34