THE ROLE OF POLITICAL SYMBOLISM IN THE CONDITIONS OF ESCALATION OF THE RUSSIAN-UKRAINIAN WAR


DOI: https://doi.org/10.17721/2415-881x.2025.97.232-247

Kateryna Goldenstein

Abstract


The role of political symbolism in the conditions of escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian war is analyzed. The destructive and constructive factors of its use are clarified. The nature of “symbolic violence” as one of the characteristic features of Russia’s hybrid war against Ukraine is understood. The process of transformation of the symbolic space of Ukraine is traced, purposeful and spontaneous signs of symbolization of reality are revealed. The cardinal changes in the use of symbolism in Ukraine are shown, which led to the revival of national symbols and identity. The significance of Ukrainian symbols, which have their roots in folk archetypes and ethnic motifs, as powerful instruments of resistance to external aggression and confirmation of national invincibility are revealed. The achievements of successful symbolic mobilization as a catalyst for national consolidation and acceleration of European integration are characterized. The reasons for Russia's symbolic defeat are revealed, which means a long-term loss of "soft power", international prestige, and the role of Russian culture. The conclusions are drawn that it is important for Ukraine to maintain the organic development of symbols, avoiding their artificial imposition, and to prepare for the transformation of military symbols in peacetime; that the symbolic component of the resistance to Russian expansion has allowed the international community to realize the role of the symbolic dimension of modern conflicts and the need to take this into account when developing development strategies for democratic countries; that further study of political symbolism in wartime will require an interdisciplinary approach using the achievements and methods of political science, anthropology, semiotics, philosophy, sociology, and law; that in the foreseeable future, the influence of digital technologies on the creation of symbols and the analysis of the long-term consequences of symbolic war for political culture and national identity will increase.

Keywords


political symbolism; Russian-Ukrainian war; symbolic space; symbolic violence; hybrid war; Kremlin propaganda; heroic epic; national symbolism; symbolic strategy

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