Representation of the Core and the Close Periphery of the Concept “War” Based on the Material of the Speeches by W. Churchill (May 13, 1940), C. De Gaulle (June 22, 1940), F. Roosevelt (December 8, 1941), J. Stalin (July 3, 1941) and Publications About Hybrid & Cognitive Wars
In the era of rapid technological change, humanity is facing new existential threats such as hybrid and cognitive wars - wars of the fourth and fifth generations. Experts and analysts clearly understand that the enemy has changed and has modernized weapons. Therefore, it is essential to spread and record the information about these fundamental shifts in popular science editions, such as printed and online dictionaries and encyclopedias, by offering a wider and clearer definition of the “war” concept. The article explores the content of the “war” concept, which is studied on the basis of the “field model” and English-English, French-French, and Russian dictionary definitions, and describes its core and close periphery. The aim of the analysis is to reveal what transformations have occurred on the level of the core and close periphery in the 21st century, which, may facilitate the formation of the strategy and tactics of counteracting threats to national security. The article studies the selected speeches of the prominent politicians of the 20th century, as well as the works of military experts and political scientists of the 21st century. The detailed analysis shows that the core of the “war” concept in the speeches by W. Churchill, C.de Gaulle, F. Roosevelt, and J. Stalin comprises such a basic characteristic as an armed struggle on the ground, in the air, at sea. However, the core of the concept in the 21st century contains the notion of ‘weapon’ as irregular asymmetric means combined with continuous manipulations in political, ideological and other spheres, with the struggle in the international arena shifting to information and communication space and the human mind becoming the battlefield.