Cyberspace, Ta’ziyeh symbols and the public sphere in Iran

Sharifi Isaloo, Amin

Cyberspace, Ta’ziyeh symbols and the public sphere in Iran

Files

Cyberspace_and_the_Public_Sphere_.pdf(1.82 MB)

Accepted version

Date

2016

Authors

Sharifi Isaloo, Amin

Publisher

International Political Anthropology

Abstract

The instruments of publicity and public engagement in the social, economic and political arenas are growing in power due to the development of communication technology and electronic media. At the same time, their capacity to play a manipulative role in forming the public sphere is disregarded. Drawing on Victor Turner’s emphasis on the importance of symbols and his analyses of liminality, this article focuses on a liminal period in the recent history of Iran, namely the 2009 Green Movement, when a ritual performance such as Ta’ziyeh and its symbols played key roles in mobilising crowds and forming the public sphere. In this way, it demonstrates how, under such liminal conditions, trickster figures can employ cultural and religious symbols in the medium of cyberspace, social media and social networks to become influential in manipulating the public.

Keywords

Public sphere , Liminality , Symbols , Ritual , Cyberspace , Ta’ziyeh , Green Movement , Iran

Citation

Sharifi Isaloo, A. (2016) 'Cyberspace, Ta’ziyeh symbols and the Public Sphere in Iran', International Political Anthropology, 9(1), pp. 37-56.