The enunciation of 'terrorism' as a kind of power and its distribution in the West

This paper is motivated by the assumption that ‘terrorism’ is a loaded and politically significant term, the use of which exudes and produces power relations. It acknowledges this, and also argues that not everyone has an equal right to use the term. This leads to an examination into the kind of power that is manifested in the use of the term, by putting the social constructivist framework to work and placing the semantic field of terrorism within that framework. It identifies a kind of power attached to the enunciation of the term ‘terrorism’ and argues that it is unequally distributed between perceived potential victims of terrorism and perceived potential perpetrators of terrorism. Drawing on Nietzsche’s genealogical analysis of morality, I argue that it is counterproductive to deny potential perpetrators the power of enunciation around the term ‘terrorism’ on the basis that this leads to a kind of slave revolt in terrorism. Redistributing the power of enunciation around the term...Show moreThis paper is motivated by the assumption that ‘terrorism’ is a loaded and politically significant term, the use of which exudes and produces power relations. It acknowledges this, and also argues that not everyone has an equal right to use the term. This leads to an examination into the kind of power that is manifested in the use of the term, by putting the social constructivist framework to work and placing the semantic field of terrorism within that framework. It identifies a kind of power attached to the enunciation of the term ‘terrorism’ and argues that it is unequally distributed between perceived potential victims of terrorism and perceived potential perpetrators of terrorism. Drawing on Nietzsche’s genealogical analysis of morality, I argue that it is counterproductive to deny potential perpetrators the power of enunciation around the term ‘terrorism’ on the basis that this leads to a kind of slave revolt in terrorism. Redistributing the power of enunciation around the term ‘terrorism’ might remove the line that separates potential victims from potential perpetrators of terrorism and work towards reducing the threat of terrorism itself by allowing those potential perpetrators to exercise this capability within mainstream society, as opposed to seeking alternative communities to do so outside of it.Show less

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The enunciation of 'terrorism' as a kind of power and its distribution in the West