Between Heroization and Victimization. Assessing Empirical Evidence of Representations of Veterans in a Pre- and Post-heroic Era

Although the underlying reasons for veteran-hero and veteran-victim relationships have been theoretically and empirically examined, research has often ignored historical, cultural and demographic perspectives in investigating this relationship. The present chapter addresses this gap in knowledge by exploring cultural narratives and values, their relationship with legitimizing military deployments and their effect on the veteran hero-victim relationship through an examination of empirical evidence on public understandings of veterans. First, the veteran-hero relationship is examined by investigating how culturally accepted narratives of history serve as a framework for social and political arrangements. Veterans, who defend social and political arrangements, contribute to cultural identity maintenance processes by upholding the symbolic properties of a society. However, recent demographic and cultural changes, cultural narratives, values, and views on social and political arrangements have become more diverse. In the absence of shared narratives and perspectives on political arrangements, military deployments are publicly scrutinized as lacking compelling reasons. Veterans then become conceptualised as somewhat heroic, but Naïve, victims of warfare and political rhetoric with consequent problematic implications for reintegration into civilian society. In conclusion, the veteran hero-victim relationship may mirror struggles to identify socially-unifying, compelling reasons for military action in post-nationalist societies.