Irina Bernebring Journiette

2008 var jag färdig freds- och konfliktvetare. Det känns längesedan nu. Men för den som är intresserad finns min C-uppsats publicerad här. Definitivt något jag kommer att forska om, om jag någon gång i framtiden bestämmer mig för att forska.

Theatre is often seen as an act to entertain or provoke, however the main argument of this paper is that theatre also can be seen as a process to build peace. This study focuses on and explores how artistic processes, such as Forum Theatre developed by Augusto Boal, can be used as a method to promote psychosocial reconciliation in war-shattered areas. With the use of Forum Theatre the spectators becomes the spect-actors, the subjects that act and not the objects that are acted upon. Subjects that are encouraged to try and find solutions to social problems by acting out possible solutions and evaluating them. By analyzing how a number of organizations have worked with Forum Theater on the Balkans and with a theoretical approach combining Homi K. Bhabhas theory about the “third space” and John Paul Lederachs theory concerning elicitive peace-building. The thesis is that Forum Theatre can promote psychosocial reconciliation by its elicitive nature and by providing a “third space” were cultures in conflict can meet without conflict. Artistic processes can in that way contribute with methods to build peace that are unavailable within traditional peace-building.