The normalization of fear: Geo-cultural vs. universal emotional sensibilities as reflected in the annual Israeli Radio Hit Parade

Abstract

Music plays an important socio-cultural role in constructing and/or reflecting geo-cultural and universal emotional states by giving voice to personal emotional sensibilities, such as self-searching, romantic longing, and desire, alongside collective spatial sentiments, patriotism, etc. Moreover, popular song lyrics reveal the socio-cultural values, norms, tastes, and emotional conventions of both their creators and their audience. Thus, this article focuses on decoding geo-cultural vs. universal emotional sensibilities via narrative analysis of the first place winners of the annual Israeli Hit Parades between 1963 and 2018, broadcast on the two major Israeli radio stations, Kol Yisrael and Galgalatz, every year on the eve of the Jewish New Year. This long-standing tradition offers a unique opportunity to examine ongoing changes in socio-emotional coping with fear and death, wars and terror while providing a contemporary conceptual and practical inquiry into the normalization of emotions within a culture and politics of fear.

Emergent Veteran Identity: Toward a New Theory of Veteran Identity in Israeli Society

“…Militarism in Israeli society is another unique aspect and is often considered to be a cultural phenomenon, deeply rooted in the culture of Israel since the early days of its establishment (Ben-Eliezer, 1995;Eyal & Samimian-Darash, 2019;Kimmerling, 1993;Moshe, 2021;Shklyan, 2022). Many Israelis are thought to be programmed to view diplomatic, strategic, and social issues through a military, warlike lens.…”

“…Given the importance of the military in everyday Israeli life (Ben-Eliezer, 1995;Eyal & Samimian-Darash, 2019;Kimmerling, 1993;Moshe, 2021;Shklyan, 2022), we speculated that there would be a positive correlation between the perception of the military's centrality in Israel and :…”