The acknowledgement of climate change as a contemporary existential threat to humankind has been prompting scholarly debate on how it might influence the future of nation-states, nationalism, and...Show moreThe acknowledgement of climate change as a contemporary existential threat to humankind has been prompting scholarly debate on how it might influence the future of nation-states, nationalism, and their makings. This theoretical discussion has notably included the question of whether appealing to the emotions of nationalism could make national communities willing to make the effort and sacrifice needed to tackle climate change. It remains to be questioned, however, what are the implications of resorting to the affective blueprint provided by nationalism in the era of climate change in both scholarship and policymaking. By performing Qualitative Content Analysis and Emotional Discourse Analysis, this work aims to address this question by empirically mapping the narratives and emotions of the nationalist environmental rhetoric of President Jair Bolsonaro’s administration in Brazil, one that portrays climate change as a threat to the nation-state’s identity and sovereignty and yet explicitly advances climate denialism. The empirical results indicate three core problems with the emotions of nationalism in the era of climate change as they entail five distinct types of exclusions. It is hoped that this research can provide evidence of what the implications of resorting to nationalism may be as far-right nativist populism makes its way into global politics. Importantly, it also seeks to dialogue with attempts at creating typologies of national discourses engaging with climate change and with methodological efforts to systematically incorporate emotions as a promising level of analysis in International Relations research.Show less
On the 15th of March 2019, the Linwood Islamic Church centre and the Al-Noor Mosque in Christchurch had been the target of a terrorist attack. The perpetrator of this attack, Brenton Tarrant, had...Show moreOn the 15th of March 2019, the Linwood Islamic Church centre and the Al-Noor Mosque in Christchurch had been the target of a terrorist attack. The perpetrator of this attack, Brenton Tarrant, had released a manifesto in which he cited NATO`s intervention of Kosovo in 1999 as one of the motives behind his attacks. However, this was not the sole instance in which Tarrant referred to the Yugoslav wars, as he was listening to the song ""Karadžić, Lead your Serbs!"" (also known as God is a Serb) prior to his arrival to the Al-Noor Mosque. Additionally, the guns used by Tarrant were brandishing the names of several individuals including those of that the Serbian Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović and Miloš Obilić. These references to Prince Lazar and Milos Obilic are significant, as they are part of the Kosovo Myth and by extension the Heavenly Serbia discourse which are linked to violence within the region, especially towards Muslims. In light of this, the purpose of this paper is to assess to what extent the discourse of the Christchurch shooter is inspired and or connected to the Heavenly Serbia discourse. In order to explore this relationship, this paper applies a critical discourse analysis on The Great Replacement written by Tarrant.Show less
This thesis analyses competing discourses around the 2017 Catalan independence referendum. Taking a quantitative approach, several distinct text-mining techniques are applied to political speech...Show moreThis thesis analyses competing discourses around the 2017 Catalan independence referendum. Taking a quantitative approach, several distinct text-mining techniques are applied to political speech transcripts and newspaper opinion pieces of pro-independence and pro-union elites in order to identify broad lexical patterns in discourse. These results are then interpreted with the guidance of previous literature and within the theoretical framework of discursive institutionalism. The analysis finds that the most salient patterns are a pro-union emphasis on law and the constitution, and a pro-independence focus on the symbolic imagery produced by the referendum, such as polling stations, ballot boxes, and police violence. The results also find differing representations of the relationship between Catalonia and Spain, and to a lesser degree, the role of Europe within the dynamic. Taken together, these findings illuminate broad discursive strategies employed by both sides of the independence debate as they seek to either provoke or prevent institutional change.Show less
Narratives in public discourse in Poland as reaction to the recent international media publications. To what extent did the narrative of public discourse in Poland change with regard to the...Show moreNarratives in public discourse in Poland as reaction to the recent international media publications. To what extent did the narrative of public discourse in Poland change with regard to the discourse of national identity and the perception of the European Union between accession to the European Union and recent political developments in 2018?Show less
The year 2014 was the year when a slowly simmering conflict between the West and Russia dramatically escalated. This conflict has been framed as a return to the hostilities of the Cold War; however...Show moreThe year 2014 was the year when a slowly simmering conflict between the West and Russia dramatically escalated. This conflict has been framed as a return to the hostilities of the Cold War; however the conflict has much older roots that pre-date the Soviet regime (1917-1991) by centuries. The relationship between Russia and its European rivals has been one of antagonism and grudging cooperation since the eighteenth century. Yet, it is not Russia’s historical foreign relations that are the focus of this study, but Russia’s current ambitions and the weapon it uses to undermine its Western rivals, namely encouraging the growth of nationalism and the far right in Europe, while Russia pursues an Eurasionist project with former Soviet states. Within the European Union anti-Western nationalism driven by the radical right and Russian influence is most visible in France, Hungary and Greece. This paper will analyse the extent and motivations of this relationship and how this relates to Russia’s Eurasian geopolitics.Show less
