The Construction of Violence: The Representation of the Paris and Oslo-Utoys attacks

Abstract

This research examines whether specific forms of violence create an image or represent particular identities that maintain, create or contribute to the production of ‘the Other’, as coined by Edward Said. The main question this research answers is how Dutch mainstream newspapers represent the Paris and Oslo-Utoya attacks and to what extent these representations contribute to the creation of ‘the Other’. The findings are analyzed by applying the theory of intersectionality by Kimberle Crenshaw and Orientalism by Edward Said. A discourse analysis is conducted using approximately ten newspaper articles reporting on both attacks. This method is put into action by asking the following questions; which axes are referred to when depicting the perpetrators, which axes are used to talk about the attacks and how do these axes intersect? The results show that several identities based on the intersection between religion, nationality, ethnicity and political beliefs are associated with a particular kind of violence. The representations of these identities contribute to the idea of ‘the Other’ due to the fact that contrasting characteristics as used to depict the different identities.