THE WEAPONIZATION OF GRIEF: HOW STATES AND NON-STATE ARMED ACTORS USE MOURNING FOR POLITICAL ENDS

Öz

This study conceptualizes grief as a politically instrumentalized emotion strategically mobilized by state and non-state actors to legitimize authority, galvanize support, and sacralize political agendas. Drawing on interdisciplinary insights from memory politics and political theology, this argument posits that public rituals of mourning—from national commemorations to insurgent martyr cults—serve as effective mechanisms for consolidating identity, demarcating moral boundaries, and justifying violence. While existing literature addresses memory, trauma, and symbolic politics, it seldom treats grief itself as a discrete tool of governance or resistance. To address this gap, the study formulates testable hypotheses regarding how mourning is leveraged for political gain. Employing qualitative content analysis, it examines four illustrative cases: U.S. discourse post-9/11, Russia’s WWII commemorative regime, Hezbollah’s martyr narratives, and ISIS’s grief-saturated propaganda. Across these cases, grief emerges as a ritualized force that forges a polarized "us vs. them" dynamic, reaffirms legitimacy, and frames sacrifice as sacred. The findings advance theorizations of effect in international politics and offer a grounded corrective to critiques of emotionalist approaches as speculative. By foregrounding grief as a structured political instrument rather than mere sentiment, the article contributes a novel analytic lens to the study of emotional governance and symbolic power.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Grief Mobilization
• Political Theology
• Memory Politics
• Mourning Rituals
• Symbolic Politics
• Martyr Narratives

YASIN SİLAH OLARAK KULLANILMASI: DEVLETLER VE DEVLET DIŞI SİLAHLI AKTÖRLERİN YASI SİYASAL AMAÇLARLA ARAÇSALLAŞTIRMASI

Öz

Bu çalışma, yas duygusunu siyasi olarak araçsallaştırılmış bir duygu biçimi olarak kavramsallaştırmakta ve yasın, devlet ve devlet dışı aktörler tarafından otoriteyi meşrulaştırmak, destek toplamak ve siyasi gündemleri kutsallaştırmak amacıyla stratejik olarak seferber edildiğini ileri sürmektedir. Hafıza politikaları ve politik teolojiden alınan disiplinler arası içgörülere dayanan çalışma, ulusal anma törenlerinden isyancıların şehit kültlerine kadar çeşitli kamusal yas ritüellerinin kimlik pekiştirme, ahlaki sınırları belirleme ve şiddeti meşrulaştırma işlevleri gören duygusal mekanizmalar olduğunu iddia etmektedir. Mevcut literatür bellek, travma ve sembolik siyaset konularına değinse de, yas duygusunun kendisini bağımsız bir yönetim veya direniş aracı olarak nadiren ele almaktadır. Bu boşluğu doldurmak amacıyla çalışma, yas tutmanın siyasi kazanımlar için nasıl kullanıldığına dair sınanabilir hipotezler geliştirmektedir. Nitel içerik analizi yöntemini kullanarak dört açıklayıcı vakayı incelemektedir: ABD’nin 11 Eylül sonrası söylemi, Rusya’nın İkinci Dünya Savaşı anma rejimi, Hizbullah’ın şehit anlatıları ve IŞİD’in yas yüklü propagandası. Bu vakaların tümünde, yas duygusunun kutuplaştırıcı bir "biz ve onlar" dinamiği oluşturduğu, meşruiyeti pekiştirdiği ve fedakârlığı kutsal bir eylem olarak çerçevelediği görülmektedir. Bulgular, uluslararası siyasette duygunun etkilerine dair kuramsal tartışmaları ileri taşıyarak, duygusal yaklaşımların spekülatif olduğuna dair eleştirilere karşı sağlam temelli bir düzeltme sunmaktadır. Böylelikle çalışma, yas duygusunu salt bir duygu olmaktan çıkarıp yapılandırılmış bir siyasi araç olarak öne sürerek, duygusal yönetişim ve sembolik iktidar çalışmalarına yeni bir analitik bakış açısı kazandırmaktadır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Yasın Seferber Edilmesi
• Politik Teoloji
• Hafıza Politikaları
• Yas Ritüelleri
• Sembolik Siyaset
• Şehitlik Anlatıları

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