Feminevil: The Chechen Black Widows’ Symbolic Terrorism
Feminevil: The Chechen Black Widows’ Symbolic Terrorism
Author(s): Jonathan Matusitz, Demi SimiSubject(s): Gender Studies, Security and defense
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego
Keywords: Black Widows; Chechnya; feminevil; gender; groups; Russia; suicide bombings; Symbolic Convergence Theory; symbols; terrorism;
Summary/Abstract: This paper examines the Chechen Black Widows and how they carry symbolic terrorist attacks against Russian targets – the authors’ newly created concept of feminevil. By and large, feminevil is a growing phenomenon of girl-militancy in human violence. The theory used in this paper is Symbolic Convergence Theory (SCT). Developed by Bormann (1972), SCT posits that a group can unite to form a collective culture so as to achieve ambitious objectives. Whether it is a word, phrase, narrative, or physical symbol, each tenet – (a) fantasy theme, (b) symbolic cue, (c) fantasy type, and (d) saga – merges with all the others to recognize anything that helps generate, increase, and sustain a rhetorical society’s awareness.
Journal: Journal of Geography, Politics and Society
- Issue Year: 12/2022
- Issue No: 4
- Page Range: 1-11
- Page Count: 11
- Language: English