The article written by Merskin touched on some topics that I had never really thought of before. I am one of those people who are easily convinced (which is not a good think, I know). BUT when someone supports their point, I don't often think about and analyze their wording to see how they are swaying their argument. I am also quite incapable of hate, but, when I thought about the ways that I legitimize my dislike of others, the points that Merskin makes seem to be true. She speaks about the shadow archetype, which is the way to dehumanize the enemies.
The ways to do this are through:
Negative Anticipation
Putting Blame on the Enemy
Identification with Evil
Zero-Sum thinking
and the Refusal to Show Empathy
As humans, we are apt to forgive friends because we see that their intentions are good and we see that they are like us. We have things in common and things that bind us. Therefore, it is easy to label someone who does not have those traits as bad and not human. I tend to forget that the bus driver who was rude to me or the waitress who was snippy with me are people too. Since I am distanced from them, it is easy to hold a grudge against them or make assumptions about them. However, I need to make sure that I take as many factors into consideration as possible when labeling these people. They could be having a bad day or something dramatic and stressful could be holding them down. The article was very interesting with the way Bush used the words EVIL and FAITH so many times to make his point that 'they' are evil and 'we' must have faith.
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Frankly, I see no reason why Bush shouldn't have spoken in the "shadow archetype" Merksin describes. Was he supposed to NOT put blame on Al Qaeda, NOT identify them with evil, and NOT refuse them empathy? If Bush followed all of those ways to construct the archtype, then great for him.
ReplyDeleteBut, getting at the bigger point Merskin made about Bush using Arab stereotypes for his advantage, I think is completely erroneous. Where did Bush in his speech stereotype Arabs? Was using the "us vs. them" mentality accessing stereotypes? No, it was accessing the notion of all freedom loving peoples vs. Al Qaeda and company. Because of her faulty arguments and attempts to vilify Bush and his speech, I think it was clear Merskin had a political agenda to pursue when writing her piece. Arab stereotyping in the media is a serious issue, but to place it in context with Bush and his speeches against Al Qaeda is wrong and a misuse of the concerns present in media Arab stereotyping.
-David Lindgren