Victimhood in Swedish political discourse
2021 (English)In: Discourse & Society, ISSN 0957-9265, E-ISSN 1460-3624, Vol. 32, no 3, p. 292-306Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]
In contemporary politics, the category of victimhood confers rights and recognition. An inclusive discussion about the construction and conferral of victimhood, which includes individuals from different social backgrounds, need be informed by the possible uses of victimhood in political discourse. The present study investigates how individuals and groups are positioned as victims by mainstream Swedish politicians. A constructionist discourse analysis inspired by positioning theory was performed of eight longer political speeches and fifty-six addresses to the Swedish parliament, held over the course of a year. The results suggest that individuals in the ‘normal’ majority, comprising the most numerous and normatively dominant group of society, were positioned as victims. Heterodox minorities, which had fundamentally different morals and political ambitions compared to the ‘normal’ majority, were positioned as offenders. The study argues that a more inclusive construction of victimhood could be accomplished by engaging with heterodox minorities through dialogue.
Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Sage Publications, 2021. Vol. 32, no 3, p. 292-306
Keywords [en]
Constructionism, discourse analysis, majority, minority, normal, normality, parliamentary debates, politics, positioning theory, poststructuralism, social liberalism, speeches, Sweden, victim, victimhood
National Category
Other Social Sciences
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:hj:diva-51360DOI: 10.1177/0957926520977216ISI: 000599591200001Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85097307327Local ID: HOA;;1514033OAI: oai:DiVA.org:hj-51360DiVA, id: diva2:1514033
2021-01-042021-01-042021-12-13Bibliographically approved