Abstract

MORENO, Sebastián. Migration and 'Culture of Fear': A Socio-Semiotic Study. Estud. - Cent. Estud. Av., Univ. Nac. Córdoba [online]. 2020, n.43, pp.65-82. ISSN 1852-1568.

Abstract Recently, migratory movements - particularly those involving large numbers of people who have come to Europe seeking to become refugees - have given rise to a kind of social discourse associated with «populist nationalism». At times this type of discourse, by generalizing and normalizing at the social level, has given rise to the emergence of a «culture of fear» which, as an articulated system of meaning and significance, can be examined from a sociosemiotic perspective, paying special attention to perceptive and interpretative processes supported by the imaginary dichotomy between a «we» and a «they» that occur both individually and collectively. This article examines the «culture of fear» that emerges around cultural diversity -specifically associated with migration- from such a theoretical perspective, in order to make a contribution both to the literature on cultures of fear, as well as to the debate on the risks their propagation and normalization pose to democratic societies.

Keywords : Fear; Culture of fear; Migration; Cultural diversity; Socio-semiotics.

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