Paper Short Abstract:

In popular and scholarly imaginations, war and fun are usually considered antithetical. This paper reflects on my experience of studying Norwegian soldiers’ experiences of fun in Afghanistan. Moving beyond normative and functionalist analyses, it highlights the importance of context and temporality.

Paper Abstract:

Soldiers’ experiences of fun in war are often understood in functional terms as coping mechanisms or stress release, thus reinforcing western moralities of war as tragic and regrettable. Alternatively, fun in war is represented as a "sick affect" associated with immorality and wrongdoing. This paper reflects on my experience of studying Norwegian soldiers’ experiences of fun in Afghanistan as a postdoc on the ERC-funded project WARFUN. Drawing on ethnographic interviews with current and former soldiers in the Norwegian Army, it shows that ‘fun in war’ is experienced and represented as ordinary and commensensical, but also ephemeral and immature. Theoretically, the paper tries to make sense of my interlocutors’ experiences of fun in Afghanistan in conversation with Ben Fincham’s sociological model of fun. Methodologically, it demonstrates the importance of moving beyond normative and functionalist analyses and highlights the importance of context and temporality.