Collective ‘We’ and Antagonistic ‘Other’: Intragroup Homogenization and Intergroup Polarization in the Hindu Nationalist Movement

• In Event: 3207 - Nations/Nationalisms I

Abstract

In this study, we apply the metacontrast principle to the study of social movement framing. Social movement frames outline the boundaries of the movement by shaping the movement message, sorting out who belongs and who does not, and setting the bounds for the emergence of a collective identity for movement adherents. The metacontrast principle refers to the tendency for group members to minimize differences within the group (intragroup homogenization) while simultaneously maximizing differences between groups (intergroup polarization). Drawing on social identity theory, we argue that metacontrast is inherent to the framing process, and that social movement organizations can enhance ingroup solidarity by using strategies in line with the metacontrast principle. To study the metacontrast principle at work in a social movement, we examine the rhetoric of the Hindutva movement—a right-wing, nationalist social movement in India that seeks to unite all Hindus, militarize them, and establish India as a Hindu nation. Using qualitative content analysis of Hindutva movement organizational websites, we find evidence of the metacontrast principle at work in Hindutva movement discourse. We identify three primary themes aimed at intragroup homogenization: 1) unification for the sake of competing for limited resources, 2) arguing for the elimination of caste and casteism and blaming the ‘other’ for dividing the in-group into these unnecessary distinctions in the first place, and 3) equating Hinduism with nationalism. We also identify three themes aimed at intergroup polarization: 1) painting the outgroup as a threat to the nation, 2) identifying the threat of religious conversion through violence, fraudulence, and deception, and 3) accusing Muslim men of “Love Jihad” as a threat to Hindu women. We conclude with a discussion of how these findings inform the study of nationalist social movements, as well as the study of social movements more generally.

Authors

• Dhruba Das, Oklahoma State University

• Monica M. Whitham, Oklahoma State University