ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the construction of Rhodesian identity through digitised films and images, arguing that those who, in different ways, define themselves as Rhodesians are a community in post-colonial limbo. The chapter argues that the Rhodesian identity being constructed in this way draws on a narrative of heroised and militarised masculinity, in which being Rhodesian is equated with being a white, male soldier fighting to protect English civilisation in Black Africa during the Rhodesian Bush War or Zimbabwe War of Liberation (1964-1979). Methodologically, the chapter represents a relatively new but growing area of research, i.e. research on social media, and in this case specifically YouTube videos. The videos are approached using Somers method for narrative analysis, and the study is grounded in a post-oriental reading of the videos. The chapter concludes that the images from these videos contribute to a larger narrative of protection (including men protecting women, whites protecting blacks, the military protecting civilians) as well as a metanarrative claim of common cause: whites and blacks acting together against the enemies of civilisation. The chapter makes connections between these images of heroism, masculinity, and power in the private, public, and political spheres.
