Cancel Culture: On the Criteria for Definition and the Legitimacy of Its Application

Cancel culture as a modern form of ostracism characterizes certain forms of public activism, primarily on social networks. However, it is increasingly applied not only to public figures, groups and brands but also to re-evaluation of a wide range of socio-cultural issues, including the historical past. In this regard, the ways and contexts of addressing the idea of cancelling by representatives of the scientific community are of particular interest. Unlike public activism, this involves a certain degree of distancing from various cancel culture practices. The aim of the article is to analyze the idea of cancelling in the research literature. According to the author, this requires a consistent discussion of the following issues: 1) the status of the term “cancel” and the relationship between metaphor and cancelling; 2) an analysis of the possibilities of spreading the discourse of cancel culture to new subject areas; 3) cancelling in historical science; 4) the role of the state in spreading the practices of cancel culture. It is argued that the origin of the idea of cancelling can be associated with the metaphorical nature of any position that claims to be original and novel. Giving it the status of a term requires a set of certain interpretations, otherwise it will remain a rhetorical figure or ideological attitudes. The article puts forward the thesis that the introduction of both the term cancel culture and its language into research discourse presuppose the existence of a canon or a set of significant objects, established in public and professional discourse, which can become subjects of cancellation. It is emphasized that the discussion should focus on legitimacyof research interpretations themselves, specifically on preserving their research potential (i.e., whether certain discourses and practices can be considered manifestations of cancel culture), rather than implicitly expressing ideological stances. 

Keywords: cancel culture, research literature, metaphor, cancel discourse, cancellation practices, historical past, historical knowledge