Dr. Asaf Saadon

Doctoral Dissertation:

The term “political correctness” has been present in Israeli culture since the late 1980s, but in the past decade, it has become a central point of public controversy. This research explores the discursive legality of the conflicts generated by political correctness in Israeli public discourse, analyzing the dynamics between speakers who use offensive expressions and those who condemn them. Through conceptual history and performative analysis, the study examines how expressions such as “homo,” “autistic,” and “kushi” have undergone discursive shifts, and identifies the conditions that enabled their redefinition. This analysis offers a framework for understanding the influence of political correctness on identities, narratives, and cultural discourse in Israel.

Dr. Saadon on his current research:

I am currently engaged in three research projects examining different aspects of discourse, identity, and social resilience.
One project investigates the perception of penetration anxieties in Israeli public discourse, focusing on fears related to the destabilization of cultural, national, and bodily boundaries. As part of this study, I examine the semantic and cultural differences between the Hebrew verb lezayen (to fuck) and the English term fuck, and how these reflect differing conceptions of power and control among Hebrew and English speakers.

Another project focuses on the concept of resilience and the ways it functions within Israeli political and social discourse. Paradoxically, the more prevalent the term “resilience” becomes in public discourse, the more its actual absence is revealed — the growing emphasis on it signals a sense of crisis and social instability.

The third project traces the conceptual history of the term Mizrahim (Jews of Middle Eastern and North African descent), following its evolutions in public and media discourse from the 19th and 20th centuries to the present day.

Together, these studies aim to deepen our understanding of identity and power discourse in Israel by combining methodologies from conceptual history, discourse analysis, and cultural studies.