De- and rehumanization in the wake of atrocities

Abstract

This paper investigates the phenomena of de- and rehumanization. Daniel
Bar-Tal has identified different societal activities and beliefs common in situations of protracted conflict, of which dehumanization is one. The reversal of dehumanization, namely rehumanization, is necessary in order to change a
society from an ethos of conflict, to one with an ethos of peace. As the activity
of dehumanization is complex, in order to understand how
rehumanization can occur, the phenomenon of dehumanization is analyzed,
and different types of dehumanization discussed. The paper finally proposes
a dialectical process of rehumanization utilizing imaginative understanding,
with a focus on the interplay between treatment and perception.

‘All oppressive regimes become stronger through the degradation
of the oppressed.’
Simone de Beauvoir (1962: p. 101)