Symbolic field of modern Islamism

The subject of this research is the key topoi of the discourse of Islamist propaganda and the mechanism of their representation by a number of unaccredited sources of the Russian-language extremist propaganda. The object of this research is the Islamist discourse covered by the “official” sources of the prohibited in the Russian Federation international terrorist organizations – “Islamic State”, “Dabiq” and “Rumiyah”, as well as a number of Russian-language sources of Islamist propaganda. The author examines such aspects of jihadist propaganda as the category of space, semiotics of Islamist propaganda; postmodern traits in the jihadist propaganda materials. Analysis is conducted on the category “Dawlah” (“state” from Arabic) as a sovereign concept in the discourse of “Islamic State” organization. Special attention is paid to the characteristic of Islamist propaganda as a phenomenon typical for the era of postmodernism. The distinctive features of the Russian-language Islamist discourse are described. Leaning on the analysis of textual and visual materials of Islamist propaganda, the author concludes on inextricable connection of the discourse of jihadist propaganda with the society of its function, despite the thesis on irreconcilable confrontation to the “Taghut” society declared by the ideologists of the international terrorist organization “Islamic State”. This thesis is proven by a certain symbolic set of Islamist propaganda, usage of symbols comprehensible to modern audiences, and significant attention given to the brand and style of the jihadists. After the defeat of the Caliphate as a proto-state entity (rather than a terrorist organization), the “Islamic State” substantially migrated into the virtual space. In an attempt to influence the audience, jihadist propaganda operates not only on the level of objective reality, but immerses the reader in an entirely virtual world. This work reveals the peculiarities of such process.