Work

Aristotle’s jihad: Persuasion and rhetoric in Islamic insurgencies

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Rhetoric is one of the oldest concepts in politics, but it remains elusive: It is difficult to adequately capture its content, assess components of rhetoric in a methodologically robust manner or examine elements of leadership rhetoric in different settings. Similarly, when considering persuasion in International Relations (IR), there is a tendency to focus on political leaders, such as Western public elites; however, this limits analysis of insurgent leadership and the framing of activism. In this article, we propose an approach for analysing the rhetoric through consideration of each of its three core components: speaker credibility and character (ethos), emotional appeal (pathos) and logic (logos) using an interpretive methodology and rhetorical assemblages, to move from abstract theorisation to practical application. We then apply this approach to a unique corpus of 55 communiqués issued by domestic and foreign leaders involved in the insurgencies in Russia’s North Caucasus and Syria between 1995 and 2017. Our findings support interest in persuasion in IR and illustrate that the analysis of rhetoric employed by insurgent leaders in the North Caucasus and Syria, as well as in violent movements more generally, needs to move beyond considerations of strategy and doctrine, thereby opening up new avenues for research in IR.

Source: Cooperation and Conflict

DOI: 10.1177/00108367251364159

Authors: Cerwyn Moore, Mark Youngman, Simon Copeland

Language: English

Topic: Rhetoric and Communication Studies

Subfield: Philosophy

Field: Arts and Humanities

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,650

Funders: Economic and Social Research Council, Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology