UKRAINIAN AMAZONS

GENDER, WAR, AND SYMBOLIC SURVIVAL IN ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOGRAPHS

Abstract

The article investigates the representation of women in contexts of war, establishing a dialogue between historical and mythical figures and the contemporary photojournalistic coverage of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict produced by professionals linked to the international news agency Associated Press. By bringing into the debate images of ancient warriors, such as the Amazons, and modern female combatants, it discusses how these figures are often positioned in a liminal zone: intermediate beings who challenge and strain patriarchal gender norms, inhabiting a symbolic in-between space—neither fully identified as women nor recognized on equal terms with men. The analysis highlights the persistence of symbolic structures in the iconography of war, showing that current photographs of Ukrainian women warriors reactivate mythological narratives and long-standing visual archetypes.