The monstrous enemy in the “terrorist” mind
This chapter focuses on how monster-like creatures may be used by “terrorist” groups to frame their own enemy. If monster-like creatures play a crucial role in the “cosmic war” narrative adopted by many “terrorist” groups, their main goal usually is not to present the enemy as an uncontrollable monster but rather “othering” it in order to cause the “social death of the victim,” which in turn helps them justify the resort to morally liminal behavior and cement their in-group cohesion. The examples discussed in this chapter span from the use of exterminatory rhetoric to frame the targets of terror bombing during World War II, the “buck” and Incubus symbolism in white supremacist terrorism, the metaphorical constructs chosen by left-wing groups in the 1970s, and the use of concept of “taghout” by Islamist movements.