Leah Ritterfeld

This paper explores the subjective experience of self-identifying as a victim and examines the unintended negative side effects of adopting such an identity. It begins by introducing three perspectives, from sociology, social ontology, and social psychology, to show how a “victimhood culture” forms, how new victim identities influence self-perception, and how adopting a victimhood mentality can lead to adverse effects. To further examine what happens when self-victimization is cultivated, the philosophical concept of ressentiment is introduced. A case study on the “incel” subculture provides an illustration of ressentiment’s dynamics. The final section discusses the necessity of resisting these dynamics, questioning how we can maintain sensitivity to injustices while avoiding the pitfalls of self-victimization.

It is not self-evident what renders conspiracy theories less warranted than justified suspicions of real conspiracies. This thesis is an examination of proposed criteria for distinguishing between the two kinds of conspiratorial allegations. It consists of a critical response to Quassim Cassam’s approach of characterizing conspiracy theories as improbable political propaganda. Issues with his criteria are highlighted and an alternative perspective is introduced. Instead of finding a special feature in the theories, the suggested alternative focuses on epistemological flaws in the theorizing of such theories. Conspiracy theorizing is introduced as a specific way of holding a belief that is self-insulating and thereby immunized to counterevidence. Self- insulating beliefs are compared to Hannah Arendt’s concept of ideology and Karl Popper’s principle of non-falsifiability.