Symbolic Politics Research Articles

How self-interest and symbolic politics shape the effectiveness of compensation for nearby housing development

Abstract Policy with concentrated costs often faces intense localized opposition. Both private and governmental actors frequently use financial compensation to attempt to overcome this opposition. We measure how effective such compensation is for winning policy support in the arena of housing development. We build a novel survey platform that shows respondents images of their self-reported neighborhood with hypothetical renderings of new housing superimposed on existing structures. Using a sample of nearly 600 Bostonians, we find that compensating residents increases their support for nearby market-rate housing construction. However, compensation does not influence support for affordable housing. We theorize that the inclusion of affordable housing activates symbolic attitudes, decreasing the importance of financial self-interest and thus the effectiveness of compensation. Our findings suggest greater interaction between self-interest and symbolic politics within policy design than previously asserted. Together, this research signals opportunities for coalition building by policy entrepreneurs when facing opposition due to concentrated costs.

The Role of Praja Mangkunegara’s Political Values in Shaping the New Order Regime

The Javanese culture, particularly the values of Mangkunegaran, played a significant role in shaping policy and political stability during the New Order era. This influence is evident through the involvement of the Suharto family, who had ties to Mangkunegaran, and the application of military values and Mangkunegaran political symbols in his government. However, despite frequent discussions on the influence of Javanese culture, few studies have specifically explored the contribution of Mangkunegaran values to political and military policies during the New Order period. This research employs a qualitative-explanatory method to delve deeper into the relationship between political elites and the development of political values within the framework of governance. The findings reveal similarities between Mangkunegaran’s economic strategies and Suharto’s development policies, as well as the use of political symbols and military principles that reinforced his regime's legitimacy. These findings enrich the understanding of how traditional values can influence modern political policies and provide insights into the importance of cultural values in creating political stability.

The history of post-Soviet Armenia through its political myths and symbols

We address the semiotics of conceptual shifts in the dominant discursive political and sociocultural practices of the Post-Soviet Armenia. The political history of independent Armenia is expressed through dominant political symbols and concepts, with a heterogeneous mixture of mythologized ancient history, Soviet and anti-Soviet ideologies. Attempts to create new symbols or re-interpret old ones led to significant transformations in the main discursive practices, which could form the foundation for the legitimization of the Armenian political identity. In general, if we depart from the substantive aspects, semiotic operations are governed by two main transformational principles: recursion and inversion, precisely those that Levi-Strauss described in relation to myth. At the same time, different cycles of this process can coexist in the same socio-cultural space. The political post-Soviet history of Armenia is divided into four periods, each of which is associated with a specific political regime (1990 - 1998; 1998 - 2018; 2018 - 2020; 2020 - up to present). Each of them gives rise to different political myths, both dominant (official) and oppositional, but in general, they are all based on the basic vocabulary that was formed in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Therefore, from the point of view of symbolic conceptual patterns, they are all based on the transformation (negation, inversion, and recursion) of the previous stages. Thus, the initial stage was characterized by a revaluation of values: everything Soviet was to be denied, and the Republic of Armenia of 1918-1920 was considered as a model. However, the new authorities intended to establish themselves through the myth of the creation of a fundamentally new - namely, a political nation, therefore, a tension has emerged between the concepts of reincarnation and creation. Soviet Armenia is contrasted with non-Soviet Armenia, which is then split into two opposed concepts: the First vs. the Third Republic. Then their “reconciliation” took place. It is reflected in the metanarrative of the Three Republics, and the Soviet Armenia occupies a worthy place as an intermediate link from incomplete to full-fledged independent statehood. In the 1900s, primordial narratives were revived, asserting the immutability of Armenia, starting with the legendary progenitor Hayk. At present, there is an obvious attempt to create the concept of the “Fourth Republic” based on the negation of the previous ones, up to the rejection of the Declaration of Independence as a Soviet legacy and the annulment of previous symbols (the coat of arms, the anthem, the Mount Ararat).

The Tripartite Qibla Wall as a Visual Form of Embodied Belief: From Al-Andalus to Mudejar and Morisco Mosques in Exile—Memory and Identity

The maqṣūrah commissioned by Caliph al-Hakam II in the 10th-century Mosque of Córdoba epitomizes the blend of sacred grandeur and political symbolism in Islamic architecture. This structure enhances aesthetic experiences, allowing worshippers to connect with divinity during Friday prayers. A distinctive feature is its qibla wall, divided into three parts, with a central empty miḥrāb symbolizing sacred force. This spatial organization, reminiscent of Late Antique basilicas in the Iberian Peninsula and the Mediterranean, persisted in peninsular mosques even after the Christian conquest of al-Andalus. Mudejar Islamic communities replicated this design in smaller mosques, perhaps to preserve al-Andalus’s memory amidst growing repression. Following the 17th-century expulsion of the Moriscos, similar architectural elements appeared in Testour, Tunisia, built by Morisco exiles. These visual codes, shared among Hispanic Islamic communities, reflect the enduring memory of the exile.

On the Issue of Symbolic Politics in Modern Moldova (1989–2023)

The article examines the evolution of narratives of symbolic politics in modern Moldova (1989–2023), including among the political “rights”. The analysis of documents and political discourse allowed the author to identify three key narratives: Russia as a threat, European integration as a national idea, the myth of the identity of the Romanian and Moldovan languages (language narrative). Particular attention in the article is paid to the dynamics of political narratives, their coherence. The current policy of Moldova in constructing the Romanian identity among Moldovans, reflecting the interests of ethnic minorities (“unionist Romanians”), provokes social disunity, which is confirmed by the growth in the number of opposition forces and protests, and in recent years – in a decrease in trust in the foreign policy vector of the republic (European integration). However, the nationalist ideological trend, in general, is developing, overcoming “multi-vectorality” and neutrality.

Semiotics and Symbolic Politics in the Reception of Seventeenth-Century Art: Reflections on Guercino's <i>Prometheus</i>

As happens in almost all eras, contemporary thinkers have been able to prepare new tools for understanding the historical phases that preceded them. Tools that have led to new disciplinary directions and new interpretative methods: think of semiotics which in relation to the artistic field has highlighted alternative exhibition languages for reading paintings; or to the philosophical question of symbolic politics. With these tools it has been possible to read the timeless myth of Prometheus with a decidedly original key and in the modern age we see a clear revival in the use of this myth, both in political essays, in philosophy, in literature and in art. Also because Prometheus brings with him many messages also based on how one wants to think of him, whether free to grant the flame to humanity or chained due to the punishment of Zeus. With this essay, we try to read the interpretation of Prometheus by one of the most important painters of the European seventeenth century, Giovan Francesco Barbieri known as Guercino who at the age of 25 decided to open the Academy of the Nude in his hometown, Cento between Bologna and Ferrara, for very young aspiring painters, and it is precisely in the rooms of that art school that he frescoed his first and only Prometheus in the act of granting flame to the inanimate clay statue. A gesture that marks the meaning of art considered one of the highest human virtues.

Rewriting the Heart Sutra: Buddhism and the (Geo)Politics of Symbols in Qiu Zhijie's Art

This article studies the Chinese artist Qiu Zhijie's (b. 1969) three experimental “rewrites” of the canonical text Heart Sutra and their geopolitical connotations within and beyond China. Examining Qiu's copious writings as well as curatorial and artistic practices over a decade, the article shows how the artist's evolving views of Buddhism have triggered, justified, and added nuances to his shifting positions in art and politics, including assertions of “native” identity and aesthetics, pursuits of non-elitist art and “folk” wisdom, and ambivalent takes on cultural colonialism. To contextualize Qiu's Buddhist-affiliated art, the article also traces how the modernized versions of Buddhism entangled with avant-garde art and politics in the postwar era, and how concepts like authenticity and cultural influence claimed not only aesthetic and thus market value, but also territorial ambitions. The citation of Buddhist doctrines and practices, the article argues, enabled Qiu to present his aesthetic maneuvers as ostensibly apolitical and hence more powerful as embodied ideologies. The artworks create “fragile” yet potent symbols of geopolitical connections that serve the discourse of a Sinocentric world, where China shares roots with “peripheries” such as Taiwan and Tibet and draws its soft power from a collectively created yet mystical and singular identity.

A Timely Synergy of Policy and Scholarship: Edward Shatz’ Slow Anti-Americanism: Social Movements and Symbolic Politics in Central Asia

A Timely Synergy of Policy and Scholarship: Edward Shatz’ Slow Anti-Americanism: Social Movements and Symbolic Politics in Central Asia

Trial of Memory: Legal Regulation as a Tool of Memory Politics in Contemporary Russia

The article examines how law enforcement sanctions, typically applied to real-life actions, are being transferred to online activities. Building on François Hartog’s ideas, the study links memorial legislation to a new “regime of historicity,” highlighting its unique role in commemoration. By examining relevant laws and media discussions, the study follows the evolution of memorial legislation, demonstrating its importance in commemorating the Great Patriotic War in post-Soviet symbolic politics. Analysis of the amendments to Article 354.1 of Russia’s Criminal Code from its original formulation in 2014 to the revisions in 2021 reveals the shifting legal landscape surrounding online commemorative practices. As virtual spaces are gaining prominence in public discourse and legal interpretations, the boundaries between online activities and real-world actions are becoming increasingly blurred. The key trends in this process include the growing reliance on virtual platforms for information dissemination, the evolving notion of publicity in legal contexts pertaining to online behavior, and the broadening enforcement of Article 354.1. This research sheds light on the intricate interplay between memory politics, virtual spaces, and legal frameworks, reflecting broader societal shifts in information consumption and expression.

A COMPARATIVE STUDY OF HOTELS OF THE JET AGE IN PAKISTAN AND INDIA: THE INTERCONTINENTAL IN KARACHI AND THE OBEROI INTERCONTINENTAL IN NEW DELHI

This paper focuses on the architecture, interior design, and promotion of new United States-financed international business and tourist hotels of the 1960s in Karachi and New Delhi, analysing these as transcultural spaces of modernity during the early jet age. In part, these and many other US-financed hotels in locations relatively close to the Soviet sphere of influence in Asia, North Africa and Europe were political symbols, promoting the the American way of life, but they were also symbolic of the aspirations of mainly post-colonial nations to project images of progress and national development. The research builds upon other recent scholarship on the manifestations and experiences of modernism in architecture, planning and travel in the Indian Subcontinent in the post-Second World War era and how modern architecture and post-colonial political framework went hand in hand with each other. Keywords: Post Colonial Architecture, Nationalism, Modern Architecture, Hotels, Subcontinent

Gendered Deification: Women Leaders and Political Iconography in Bangladesh

This paper explores gendered political deification in Bangladesh with emphasis on the situation of women politicians in Bangladesh today. Using political deification tools developed by Sen and Nielsen with the help of the concept of political leadership feminism, we look at the interaction of gender with the construction of political imagery. In accomplishing this research, critical discourse analysis and visual semiotics are employed to establish an understanding of the representation and received portrayal of two key Bangladeshi ‘women of power’, namely, Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia. These findings uncover a multi-layered duality based on the gender and dynastic-political relations in Bangladesh, along with the persona of the supreme leader of a country. We map out how the concept of mother and family relations is mobilized to build strong political discourses, even as the patriarchal framework is both affirmed and subverted. In trying to attain gender equality, female leaders obtain the most political power but are subject to gender roles and, at times, contribute to the perpetuation of those roles. By contextualizing this study in South Asian politics, we are indeed helping the existing scholarly discourse on gender and political iconography, women’s participation in democratization, and the dilemmas of female leadership in patriarchal societies. This study advances knowledge on gender, power, and political symbolism in SA with the potential for introducing similar phenomena in other cultural settings.

Wallmapu-Araucanía in flames! An historical political ecology of fire in the domination of southern Chile

The conflict over Wallmapu-Araucanía in southern Chile, between the Spanish conquistadores, the Chilean state and the Mapuche peoples, dates from the 16th century, with a key moment being the forced integration of Mapuche land into the Chilean state in the late nineteenth century. This paper discusses this long period of conflict in three moments: conquest, occupation and liberation, and it focuses on the use of fire as a politico-symbolic and techno-productive tool. A ‘landscapes of power framework’ is used for this historical political ecology analysis, based on texts from the nineteenth century to the present. The conclusions point to the historical importance of the use of fire as a tool not only for physical changes in the landscape, but principally as a tool of political symbolism that relates to a history of conflict of terror and displacement, used by the forces of occupation and resistance.

Symbolic Politics: The Main Problems in Armenia

Armenia has entered the information age, and whether we embrace it or not, Armenian society has evolved into an information-based society. This shift has brought significant changes to Armenia's political landscape. Currently, there is a robust movement of political symbols and meanings in Armenia’s digital information sphere. This movement significantly amplifies the role and significance of symbolic politics in the country’s political arena. It's important to note that symbolic politics plays a pivotal role in shaping public perceptions of social reality. Moreover, in the information era, the relationship between authorities and society in Armenia is increasingly defined by symbols and images. The growing importance of symbolic politics in Armenia's information age presents novel challenges for political scientists. Although classical political science traditionally focuses on political processes and institutions, there is now a pressing need to study the symbolic dimension of politics. As a result, there is a demand for comprehensive research into the characteristics of symbolic politics in Armenia.

Своєрідна багатомовність на банкнотах Австро-угорської Монархії

The topic of research devoted to the linguistic landscape is gradually expanding, so the concept itself is constantly acquiring new interpretations. The article considers banknotes as elements of the linguistic landscape, and the linguistic landscape as a reflection of language policy, its peculiar public expression. The issuance of banknotes is strictly regulated by the state, while controlling not only the shape, color, decorative elements, denominations and security elements of the banknotes, but also the symbols and languages that appear on them. Along with portraits of historical figures, images related to the culture and historical past of a certain nation, the presence (or absence) of languages on banknotes is also an element of symbolic politics and a part of revealing the language policy of a certain state. The publication examines the languages that were represented in the inscriptions of various series of banknotes issued in the dualistic Austro-Hungarian Monarchy between 1900 and 1919. The article analyzes the reasons for the appearance of different languages on banknotes of the specified period. Based on the languages depicted on the banknotes, it is shown that the two main parts of the federal state of Austria-Hungary pursued different language policies. The article highlights that, according to the concept of dualism, the German language dominated on one side of the Austro-Hungarian banknotes, and the Hungarian language on the other. On the front side, along with the most important information, which was provided only in German, the denomination of the banknote was indicated in the languages of several nations of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. The reverse side was purely monolingual – Hungarian. Therefore, the denomination was indicated on the banknote in a total of ten languages: German, Czech, Croatian, Polish, Italian, Romanian, Serbian, Slovenian, and also Ruthenian or Ukrainian. The article tries to find an answer to why the Czech, Croatian, Serbian, Polish, Italian, Romanian, Slovenian and Ukrainian (Ruthenian) languages were used on banknotes next to German, and why the reverse side of the banknotes remained monolingual (Hungarian). The authors concluded that even states that issue multilingual banknotes guarantee that the state language should be in a dominant position.

Symbolic Politics of Karaeng Power in Jeneponto

This study explores the symbolic political phenomenon of Karaeng power in Jeneponto, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. The main objective of this research is to understand how Karaeng traditional symbols of power are maintained and utilized in the local political context. Qualitative research methods are used by conducting in depth interviews with community figures and content analysis of related primary and secondary data. The research results show that traditional Karaeng symbols of power still have strong relevance in influencing local political dynamics, even in the modern era and ongoing democratization. The discussion in this paper highlights the importance of understanding the role of symbols in the local political context, as well as its implications for power dynamics and community political participation in Jeneponto.

When the “gormen” (government) – walled up the rivers: Reading Sarah Joseph’s Budhini as contemporary Indian hydrofiction

ABSTRACT In India, nationalist discourses surrounding hydro-modernity rely heavily on the mega-dam as a political symbol that promised technological progress. New critical perspectives like the “blue humanities” allow the exploration of the politics and poetics of “dam narratives” from India that respond to the infrastructural imaginary of the mega-dam. This article will analyse Sarah Joseph’s novel Budhini as a hydrofiction centred around hydropower. It will argue that Budhini counters the nationalist iconography associated with mega-dams in India, reclaiming the palimpsestic (hi)stories of its unimagined communities. The re-imagining of Budhini’s story can be understood as an act of “writing back” that challenges the postcolonial state’s appropriation of the language of sacrifice, central to its developmentalist rhetoric. The novel foregrounds the little narratives of postcolonial India’s developmental oustees against the dominant accounts of its celebrated hydro-modernity, through emphasis on the thematic motifs of sacrifice, submergence, and displacement.

Deterrence icons as status symbols: American forces in NATO’s eastern flank

How can a signal of extended deterrence, such as prepositioning of foreign military forces, signify status for the beneficiaries of the allied deterrence/reassurance chain? This article explores how the manifestation and communication of allied deterrence can concurrently constitute an affectively charged status symbol for the protégé states of this international security practice. It does so on the example of the Baltic states and Poland, probing the presence and functionality of the American forces as a status marker in North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)’s eastern flank states after 2014. Engaging discourse analysis and expert interviews, the article shows (1) how the intersubjectively determined success of deterrence is dependent on historically potent symbols which have become emblematic of extended deterrence and (2) how deterrence icons can simultaneously serve as multifarious status symbols in intra-alliance politics. The self-identification of protégé states as worthy stakes to deter over emerges as an ambivalent status position defined by the shortage of attributes, rather than a function of their tally. The article contributes to the understanding of the symbolic form of (allied) deterrence and the multivocal status value ascribed to the American ‘boots on the ground’.

Treasure legacy or political symbolization: Longquan celadon excavated from the Smederevo Fortress of Serbia

Treasure legacy or political symbolization: Longquan celadon excavated from the Smederevo Fortress of Serbia

Нарратив как смыслообразующий элемент политической символизации

The article deals with a theoretical analysis of the concept of political narrative as a political reality, which is not reducible to a set of positivistically established facts. In the context of political symbolization, narratives as elements of interpretation of politics implicate political meanings through verbal situations that develop as an interaction of judgments. Political narratives function as mediators in social activities and not only communicate information, but do it incrementing new meanings, as political narratives are conveyed through deliberation. The “narrative identity” is formed as a reference to metanarratives and their creators. The author shows that any symbolic political reality is a constellation of involvement narratives that create verbal situations of interactions between community members and the collective history as a narration. Therefore, a narrative introduces individuals into a political context. This enables to fix the narrative “footprint” of joint social practices that are named “culture”, “nation”, “country”, etc. At the same time, the author substantiates that the form and the content of political narratives have the meaning of retrospective inner causality, since the inherited array of political interpretations is constantly «retold» in the present reality. It is concluded that in the context of political symbolization, narrative can be an analytical solution of the problem of interaction between individual consciousness and a society.

Walhi's Strategy to Fight for Justice in Environmental Permit Cancellation: Case Study of Construction of PLTU Tanjung Jati A Cirebon

The issue of environmental permits for PLTU Tanjung Jati A is a serious problem because the publication does not include an analysis of the release of CO2 emissions which have an impact on environmental damage and climate change. This research aims to describe Walhi West Java's strategy in its efforts to cancel the environmental permit for PLTU Tanjung Jati A through its international and national networks. In line with this aim, this research uses a case study approach with data collection carried out through in-depth interviews and analysis of related documents. The theory used by the Transnational Advocacy Network (TAN) theory as an analytical tool was put forward by Margaret E. Keck and Kathryn Sikkink. The results of this research, Walhi West Java has implemented four TAN strategies, namely Information Politics by disseminating information and findings, Symbolic Politics by carrying out campaign actions with symbols, Leverage Politics by collaborating with stronger actors, and Accountability Politics by supervising actors who advocated to walk with the commitments that have been set. Based on these four strategies, Walhi West Java is very optimal in carrying out Information Politics and Leverage Politics strategies. The weakness is that the Political Accountability strategy has not been fully successful because the Tanjung Jati A PLTU project is still in the policy documents and RUPTL. Walhi West Java's TAN implementation strategy succeeded in bringing victory over the Head of DPMTSP regarding the cancellation of environmental permits.