Ritualization in Swedish politics
A Rhetorical Study of Social Dramas and Political Community Rituals
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.52610/rhs.v27i87.294Keywords:
rhetoric, politics, ritual, social drama, liminality, mimetic crisisAbstract
The article examines ritualization in Swedish politics. Political journalism and political commentary is, to a significant extent, occupied with the symbolic actions of politicians, often strategically staged by the actors themselves: politicians show themselves participating in communal meals, out on a trip, in nature. Symbolic actions also play a significant role in connection with crises and scandals, which usually result in dramas with repeated action patterns. The study aims to demonstrate such patterns and point to underlying motives. It begins with a discussion of the concept of ritual and introduces terms such as social drama, liminality and mimetic desire. It concludes with a discussion of the legitimizing rituals that characterize the constitution of political coalitions in Sweden in recent years. The article shows how rituals and social dramas function as a way of dealing with the crises that characterize politics, both mimetic crises and tendencies towards excessive polarization.
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