dehumanization
Treating people inhumanely
Dehumanization is the process of stripping away someone's human qualities or dignity—treating people as objects, animals, or abstractions rather than as individuals deserving respect.
It often precedes or accompanies violence and oppression: The propaganda campaign relied on systematic dehumanization of the enemy.
Dehumanization can be institutional (slavery, genocide) or casual (bureaucracies reducing people to numbers).
The verb is dehumanize.
Transforming into sellable goods
- instrumentalizationTreating as mere means
- depersonalizationDetachment from one's identity
- reificationTreating abstracts as concrete
- objectifyTreat as mere thing
deindividuation · anonymization · facelessness · erasure · robotization · abstraction · uniformity · standardization
Oppressive, absolute governance
- subjugationForcing into submission
- enslavementForced human ownership
- persecutionSystematic mistreatment of groups
- dominationSupreme authority held
colonialism · totalitarianism · repression · exploitation · imperialism · authoritarianism · disenfranchisement · coercion
Viewing as fundamentally different
- prejudicePreformed unfavorable opinion
- discriminationUnjust differential treatment
- stereotypingOversimplified group-based judgments
- labelingAssigning identifying markers
scapegoating · vilification · demonization · ostracism · marginalization · exclusion · derogation · slurs
Savage, merciless behavior
- atrocityUnforgivable mass cruelty
- barbaritySavage or cruel behavior
- savageryExtreme, violent cruelty
- sadismPleasure from inflicting pain
torture · heartlessness · callousness · pitilessness · mercilessness · viciousness · cold-bloodedness · ferocity
Emotional separation between people
- disconnectionState of being severed
- isolationComplete separation from others
- detachmentSeparation or emotional uninvolvement
- depersonalizationDetachment from one's identity
anomie · dissociation · numbness · disengagement · withdrawal · apathy · indifference · disaffection
commodification
Transforming into sellable goods
- instrumentalizationTreating as mere means
- depersonalizationDetachment from one's identity
- reificationTreating abstracts as concrete
objectify · deindividuation · anonymization · facelessness · erasure · robotization · abstraction · uniformity · standardization · numbing
tyranny
Oppressive, absolute governance
- subjugationForcing into submission
- enslavementForced human ownership
- persecutionSystematic mistreatment of groups
domination · colonialism · totalitarianism · repression · exploitation · imperialism · authoritarianism · disenfranchisement · coercion · suppression
othering
Viewing as fundamentally different
- prejudicePreformed unfavorable opinion
- discriminationUnjust differential treatment
- stereotypingOversimplified group-based judgments
labeling · scapegoating · vilification · demonization · ostracism · marginalization · exclusion · derogation · slurs · propaganda
brutality
Savage, merciless behavior
sadism · torture · heartlessness · callousness · pitilessness · mercilessness · viciousness · cold-bloodedness · ferocity · malevolence
estrangement
Emotional separation between people
- disconnectionState of being severed
- isolationComplete separation from others
- detachmentSeparation or emotional uninvolvement
depersonalization · anomie · dissociation · numbness · disengagement · withdrawal · apathy · indifference · disaffection · fragmentation
- Dystopia1984, Nineteen Eighty-Four, dystopian fiction, totalitarianism, Brave New World
- intimidationthreats, threatening, menacing, intimidate, bullying
- discriminationracism, systemic discrimination, Jim Crow laws, sexism, racial harassment
- racismracism, racial bias, white supremacy, racial discrimination, bigotry
- social psychologysocial behavior, conformity, social influence, attribution, groupthink
- character arcscharacter arc, arc, redemption arc, hero's journey, fall from grace
dehumanizationhumanization
Attributing personal characteristics
rehumanization · dignification · personalization · individualization · validation
dehumanizationanthropomorphism
Attributing personality to things
personification · anthropomorphization · humanization · humanizing · animism
dehumanizationempowerment
Gaining authority or confidence
liberation · respect · emancipation · enfranchisement · compassion