Citation

Savage R. Patterns Prejudice 2013; 47(2): 139-161.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

10.1080/0031322X.2012.754575

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

While there has been a great deal of scholarly discussion of dehumanization in specific cases of genocide, few have asked why it manifests, whether it is present in all cases or what function/s it performs. These questions--and therein a broader problematic concerning the validity and usefulness of the concept--remain open. Savage's article addresses this gap in the literature by proposing a novel model of genocidal dehumanization that is conceived as a discursive strategy. In doing so, it takes a comparative approach, surveying previous work on genocidal dehumanization emerging from different disciplines and examining definitional problems. In demonstrating why the conditions of modernity--specifically, the rise of the state and changing perceptions of legitimate violence--require dehumanization as an accompaniment to genocide, the paradigm of initially 'good' or 'ordinary' perpetrators is rejected. Genocidal dehumanization is shown to perform two distinct functions: motivation, and legitimization. Manifestations of genocidal (and non-genocidal) dehumanization can therefore be placed on a continuum of extremity. Ultimately, Savage proposes a new structural and functional model of genocidal dehumanization.