Hegemonic bodies in robotic warfare : A critical discursive analysis of drone warfare through a feminist perspective

Abstract: This thesis is a critical discourse analysis of robotic warfare through a feminist perspective. The study aims to investigate how gender norms and militarization affects the drone operators within the United Stated Armed Forces. Also, whether the drone operator’s gender anxiety created in a hegemonic masculine and militarized society embodies the drones and shapes robotic warfare. The theoretical framework is based on three concepts within feminist war theory, namely hegemonic masculinity, militarism and militarization, and embodiment. The thesis analyses text and social practices in accordance with Norman Fairclough’s approach to Critical Discourse Analysis. The collected data consists of text such as speeches made by the former president Barack Obama, but also narratives, the image of the drone, as well as societal practices such as whether the drone operators decide to fire, what their reactions are and what actions are taken by different actors that could be understood as protecting a gender identity.  The thesis finds that robotic warfare can indeed be understood to be shaped by gender norms and militarism. The competition of hegemonic positions in society influence how the drone operators behave and who is targeted, this shapes the way war is practiced using drones.