Words of War: The Rhetorical Weapons of Folklore After October 7

Authors

• Steve Siporin, Utah State UniversityFollow

Abstract

The chant “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” became well known after the beginning of the Israel-Hamas War (October 7, 2023) due to its widespread use at anti-Israel demonstrations and on news broadcasts, social media, and YouTube videos. A retort that mocked the inability of demonstrators who espoused the slogan to answer the questions “Which river? Which sea?” also circulated widely. Noncombatants on the domestic front relied on these two items of folklore (among others), a chant and a retort, to support their aims and satisfy their emotions. This essay traces the origins of each of the two folk expressions and analyzes their rhetoric.

Recommended Citation

Siporin, Steve (2026) "Words of War: The Rhetorical Weapons of Folklore After October 7," Jewish Folklore and Ethnology: Vol. 5: Iss. 1, Article 4.
Available at: https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/jewishfolklore/vol5/iss1/4