The construction of a female narrative in the resistance of the Ukrainian war (2014-2024): Examples (uses), channels and tools
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51698/tripodos.2025.58.01Keywords:
Ukraine, female narrative, war, communication, propagandaAbstract
The construction of a discourse, from a woman’s point of view in a war context, which is modifying behaviors, policies, and economies worldwide, has forged a distinctive identity and voice within the global story of the conflict. The present study examines individual and collective experiences of women who participate in the resistance, either in military roles, providing logistic support, or as activists. Through interviews or focus groups, performed by the authors during the last few years in Ukraine, and with the support from the analysis of publications in communication media and social networks, specific challenges are underlined that women must face in a hostile environment. In addition, through this field study in a war zone, the authors delve into the impact of these narratives on the public perception of the conflict and gender equality, seeking an enriching and objective view of how women contribute towards modeling and redefining the war narrative from an egalitarian prism. This approach seeks to understand how their experiences and perspectives have shaped the global narrative of the conflict, offering a more complete and nuanced view of the situation in Ukraine.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
La construcción de un discurso, desde un punto de vista femenino en un contexto bélico que está modificando comportamientos, políticas y las economías de todo el planeta, ha forjado una identidad y una voz distintiva dentro del relato global del conflicto. La presente investigación examina experiencias individuales y colectivas de las mujeres que participan en la resistencia, ya sea en roles militares, de apoyo logístico o como activistas comunitarias. A través de entrevistas o focus groups, realizados por los autores recientemente en Ucrania, y apoyándonos en los análisis de publicaciones en medios de comunicación internacionales, se destacan los desafíos específicos que enfrentan a las mujeres en un entorno hostil. A través de esta investigación de campo en la zona beligerante, se profundiza, asimismo, sobre el impacto de estas narrativas en la percepción pública del conflicto y en la igualdad de género, buscando una visión enriquecedora y objetiva de cómo las mujeres contribuyen a moldear y redefinir la narrativa de la guerra desde un prisma igualitario y fundamental. Este enfoque busca comprender cómo sus experiencias y perspectivas han moldeado la narrativa global del conflicto, ofreciendo una visión más completa y matizada de la situación en Ucrania.
Downloads
References
Alonso-Martín-Romo, Luis; Oliveros-Mediavilla, Miguel, and Vaquerizo-Domínguez, Enrique (2023). Perception and opinion of the Ukrainian population regarding information manipulation: A field study on disinformation in the Ukrainian war. Information Professional, 32(4). https://doi.org/10.3145/epi.2023.jul.05
Al Oraimi, Suaad and Antwi-Boateng, Osman (2023). Surviving Patriarchy: Ukrainian women and the Russia-Ukraine war. Journal of International Women’s Studies, 25(6), 8. https://vc.bridgew.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3137&context=jiws
Begikhani, Nazand; Hamelink, Wendelmoet, and Weiss, Nerina (2022). Theorising women and war in Kurdistan: A feminist and critical perspective. Kurdish Studies Archive (pp. 4-33). Brill. https://doi.org/10.33182/ks.v6i1.432
Boyko, Kateryna (2023). Valkyries and Madonnas: Constructing femininity during the Russo-Ukrainian war. In Ann-Mari Sätre, Yulia Gradskova, and Vladislava Vladimirova (eds.), Post-Soviet women: New challenges and ways to empowerment (pp. 203-224). Springer International Publishing. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-38066-2_10
Chaban, Natalia; Zhabotynska, Svitlana, and Knodt, Michèle (2023). What makes strategic narrative efficient: Ukraine on Russian e-news platforms. Cooperation and Conflict, 58(4), 419-440. https://doi.org/10.1177/00108367231161272
Darden, Jessica Tristo (2023). Ukrainian wartime policy and the construction of women’s combatant status. Women’s Studies International Forum, vol. 96, 102665). Pergamon. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wsif.2022.102665
Díaz Moreno, Lucía (9 March 2022). Esta foto de una mujer con una venda sí es de un ataque de Rusia en Ucrania en 2022: no corresponde a una explosión de gas en 2018. Newtral. https://www.newtral.es/mujer-explosion-gas-2018-ataque-rusia-2022/20220309/
Eggert, Jennifer Philippa (2022). Women and the Lebanese civil war: Female fighters in Lebanese and Palestinian militias. Palgrave Macmillan.
Eizmendi Iraola, Maider and Peña-Fernández, Simón (2023). El rostro de la guerra: Las mujeres en las fotografías de la prensa internacional durante la invasión de Ucrania. Fotocinema. Revista Científica de Cine y Fotografía, (27), 245-262. https://doi.org/10.24310/Fotocinema.2023.vi27.15539
Gibbons-Neff, Thomas and Guttenfelder, David (24 February 2024). Waiting for Serhiy. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/24/world/europe/russia-ukraine-serhiy.html
Holmén, Lydia (2023). Constructing heroes and villains: Identifying narratives in the Ukrainian defence’s social media presence. https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1827394/FULLTEXT01.pdf
Hopkins, Valerie (25 February 2024). In Russia, knowing that her son is dead, and waiting for him anyway. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/25/world/europe/russia-ukraine-war-dead.html
Horbyk, Roman and Orlova, Dariya (2023). Transmedia storytelling and memetic warfare: Ukraine’s wartime public diplomacy. Place Branding and Public Diplomacy, 19(2), 228-231. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41254-022-00283-1
International Amnesty (2023). Ukraine: Women face grave risks as Russia’s all-out aggression against Ukraine enters second year. International Amnesty. https://t.ly/bOeA0
Labashchuk, Oksana; Harasym, Tetiana; Reshetukha, Tetiana; Majbroda, Katarzyna, and Verbovetska, Oksana (2023). Ukrainian narratives about the outbreak of the war: The main themes, structure and composition. Tautosakos Darbai, 66, 13-29. http://dspace.tnpu.edu.ua/bitstream/123456789/31674/1/article_Harasym_lt.pdf
López Torán, José Manuel (2023). Nuevos medios, viejas reglas: Rusia-Ucrania y la propaganda digital en tiempos de guerra. Hastapenak: Revista de Historia Contemporánea y Tiempo Presente - Gaurko Historiaren Aldizkari Kritikoa, 5, 54-74. https://www.hastapenak.com/uploads/9/1/9/2/91924678/estudio_3__h5__-_lópez_torán.pdf
Magallón-Rosa, Raúl; Fernández-Castrillo, Carolina, and Garriga, Miriam (2023). Fact-checking in war: Types of hoaxes and trends from a year of disinformation in the Russo-Ukrainian war. Profesional de la Información, 32(5), e320520. https://doi.org/10.3145/epi.2023.sep.20
Manekin, Devora and Wood, Reed M. (2020). Framing the narrative: Female fighters, external audience attitudes, and transnational support for armed rebellions. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 64(9), 1638-1665. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022002720912823
Martínez Bascuñán, Mariam; González Laya, Arancha; Moreno, Aroa, and Simón, Patricia (2023). Mujeres y niñas. El botín de guerra favorito (debate). Minerva. Revista del Círculo de Bellas Artes, 40, 12-17. https://dialnet.unirioja.es/servlet/articulo?codigo=9066267
Martsenyuk, Tamara (2022). El rol de las organizaciones feministas en la igualdad de género en la sociedad ucraniana. In Manuel Ferez Gil and Olena Palko (eds.), Descubriendo Ucrania: Su pueblo, su historia y su cultura (pp. 143-151). Poliedro Editorial de la Universidad de San Isidro. https://ekmair.ukma.edu.ua/handle/123456789/23901
Merrin, William and Hoskins, Aandrew (2024). Sharded war: Seeing, not sharing. Digital War, 1-4. https://doi.org/10.1057/s42984-023-00086-5
Parra Ferreras, Sara (2023). Communication and trafficking in persons in context of war. Case study of the conflict in Ukraine. Visual Review. International Visual Culture Review, 14(1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.37467/revvisual.v10.4599
Pham, Linh (2023). Strategic narratives during armed conflict: The case of Ukraine post-2022 Russian invasion. https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1774333/FULLTEXT02
Schmid, Wolf (2010). Narratology. An Introduction. Walter de Gruyter. GmbH & Co.T.
Shepherd Laura J. (2008). Power and authority in the production of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325. International Studies Quarterly, 52(2), 383-404. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2478.2008.00506.x
Vincent, Faustine (23 February 2024). En Ukraine, le traumatisme à grande échelle des civils. Le Monde. https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2024/02/23/en-ukraine-le-traumatisme-a-grande-echelle-des-civils_6218078_3210.html
Winterbotham, Emily (2023). The impact of gendered narratives in the conflict in Ukraine. Global Center on Cooperative Security. https://www.globalcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/GCCS-RUSI-2023-PB-Impact-Gendered-Narratives-Conflict-Ukraine.pdf
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Tripodos

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Once an article has been approved for publication in Tripodos, the exclusive right to publish the work becomes the property of Blanquerna School of Communication and International Relations of Ramon Llull University. These rights can be granted to a third party with the agreement of the author(s).
Until the articles have been approved for publication, Blanquerna School of Communication and International Relations of Ramon Llull University has no rights over them.
The submission of articles is understood to represent explicit consent to these conditions of publication.







