Discuss the symbolic interactionist perspective in terms of global conflict and terrorism
Sociological perspective of symbolism offers a different view of global conflicts and terrorism. Symbolic interactionism is an approach that tries to explain the relationship between individuals and society. The theory provides that interactions and action of humans become more evident through the use of symbols. Under this approach, humans are seen more as actors (publisher], 2020) . The guiding principles of the theory include the belief that individuals act towards things based on the implications that the elements have for them, and the effects rise out of social connections and social activity develops from fitting together of individual lines of activity. Symbolic interactionist viewpoint on war has two points of emphasis.
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One of the themes covers the observations and experiences of soldiers and civilians who have experienced war. Another idea includes the adoption of symbols in war. These symbols are used to either draw support for war or campaign against it. The flag is a prevalent symbol in combat zones and is used to motivate, inspire as well as a symbol of patriotism. The flag can also be used to indicate distress such as during the Vietnam war Americans back home protested with the flag upside down to show non-support of the war efforts. Another concept of symbolism in war and terrorism regards the use of different words or thoughts to army trainees when referring to deaths on the battlefield. An enemy death is a necessary killing and not murder, and deaths of civilians are described as collateral damage as a way of reducing public horror (Battarbee & Koskinen, 2020) . As regards terrorism, the actions of terrorists depend from the speaker’s point of view. To some, their actions are a fight for freedom while to others, its acts of evil.
What is the United States’ position in negotiating with terrorists?
The official position of the government of the United States is that it does not negotiate with terrorists even for hostages’ release. This position, however, actions gave shown that they are not cast on stone. There are on-going peace negotiations talks between the United States and the Taliban for peace and stability in Afghanistan (Khouri et al., 2020) . In July 2015, President Obama revealed that the government could establish communications with a terrorist for release of American hostages.
References
Battarbee, K., & Koskinen, I. (2020). Symbolic Interactionism - an overview | ScienceDirect
Topics. Retrieved 10 August 2020, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/symbolic-interactionism
Khouri, R., Khouri, R., Allison, G., Pringle, G., Trujillo, K., Allison, G., & Khouri, R. (2020).
Negotiating With ‘Terrorists’? How U.S.-Taliban Talks Expose the Mad Logic of America’s War on Terror. Retrieved 10 August 2020, from https://www.belfercenter.org/publication/negotiating-terrorists-how-us-taliban-talks-expose-mad-logic-americas-war-terror
Publisher], [. (2020). 16.1 Sociological Perspectives on War and Terrorism. Retrieved 10
August 2020, from https://open.lib.umn.edu/socialproblems/chapter/16-1-sociological-perspectives-on-war-and-terrorism/
