[ertian]

I think that's trying to draw the metaphor too far. The point is just that people have a tendency to be fascinated with their enemies, and exaggerate the differences between them: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Other_(philosophy)

The best and most recent example of that, for a modern American, would be the USSR. You do come across similar processes with, say, Chinese or Arabs, but they're not explicit enemies, and there's more cultural integration and exchange in those cases.