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An Investigation Into the Effects of Cultural Policies on National Identity

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An Investigation Into the Effects of Cultural Policies on National Identity Cultural Policy in Lithuania since the 1980s: An Investigation into the Effects of Cultural Policies on National Identity MA Thesis in European Studies Graduate School for Humanities Universiteit van Amsterdam Author Laisvė Linkutė Student number 10394192 Main Supervisor Dhr. Dr. G.J.A. Snel Second Supervisor Dhr. Dr. M.E. Spiering August, 2013 1 Laisve Linkute 10394192 In memory of my father Algirdas 2 Laisve Linkute 10394192 Contents: Abstract: ............................................................................................................................................................ 4 Introduction: ...................................................................................................................................................... 5 First chapter: Lithuania in the Soviet Union ...................................................................................................... 9 Second Chapter: Transition to democracy ...................................................................................................... 22 Third Chapter: Lithuania in the EU .................................................................................................................. 33 Conclusions: ..................................................................................................................................................... 47 Bibliography: .................................................................................................................................................... 49 3 Laisve Linkute 10394192 Abstract: The aim of this thesis is to answer the question: how has Lithuanian national identity been affected by cultural policies in 20th-21st centuries (under the Soviet rule; in independent Lithuania; and within the EU context)? 20th century saw two big changes in Lithuania‘s history: in early 1940s Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union and in 1990s it became independent again. After both of the events the political system in Lithuania changed, so did the cultural policy. Another big change awaited the country in the 21st century – Lithuania became a member of the European Union in 2004. This investigation will analyse how the different cultural policies affected national identity during the period of Soviet occupation and in independent Lithuania. The thesis is split into three chapters, each of them analyses different periods of time: the first one encompass Soviet Lithuania, the second covers the early years of independent Lithuania and the third one investigates the developments after entering the EU. Each of them will look at the development of cultural policy and will investigate how those policies affected national identity. Finally, this thesis will draw a conclusion on the given findings of each chapter. 4 Laisve Linkute 10394192 Introduction: Research Question: How has Lithuanian national identity been affected by cultural policies in 20th-21st centuries (under the Soviet rule; in independent Lithuania; and within the EU context)? Log line: ‘Socialist in content but national in form’ – the ultimate Soviet Union formula for its local cultures…however, every nation sought to preserve its ‘content’ - national identity. The thesis brings us to the period of the Soviet rule in Lithuania; and explores how the representation of the national identity via culture has changed together with the independence and the years of transition all the way to the membership in the EU. Argument: I will look into how Lithuanian national identity has been affected by cultural policy. I will argue that the 'national identity' has been identified differently in different circumstances by the different governing powers, and I try to detect how it was positioned vs. ‘Soviet identity' and later on vs. ‘European identity’. Moreover, I will detect institutional changes over time. Three important changes of the system will be presented: first, after the Soviet occupation; second – after the collapse of the Soviet Union and third – after entering the EU. Clarifications of the Study: National identity is ‘the sense of belonging, which one feels to a particular group of people’ (nation) or a country (state) as a whole (Cox 2012; Dictionary 2013). It encompasses culture, traditions, language and politics. It is ‘a construction of natural and cultural factors’ (Mutanen 2010: 28). Thus, we see that culture is part of national identity. The latter, by no means, can be influenced by various cultural changes, as well as changes in cultural policy. Cultural policy can act in both ways – it can weaken or break national identity; or it can preserve and promote national identity. Today, one of the aims of Lithuanian cultural policy is ‘to preserve and promote…national identity’ (Liutkus 2010: 5). Therefore, the topic is very fruitful and will allow us to approach national identity from the perspective of cultural policy. Due to Lithuanian history, the changes in Lithuanian cultural policy have been very sharp. Thus, in this thesis we will see the Sovietisation of cultural policy and, later, the development of Lithuanian national cultural policy. This thesis will show 5 Laisve Linkute 10394192 how differently national identity has been addressed in the state and in the cultural policy due to the political changes. Research Field: Existing studies on Lithuanian national identity cover the whole 20th century, therefore I will be able to rely on them. However, there is a need for research to cover the last two decades of the present century. Among many works, I have found studies by researchers Eglė Rindzevičiūtė (2008) and Vilmantė Liubinienė (1999) to be very useful and accurate. Moreover, very beneficial research has been carried out by Lithuanian Culture Research Institute (LCRI), which investigates Lithuanian culture, development of art and philosophy, and their links with presence and contemporary world‘s cultural changes. LCRI looks into Lithuanian culture and analyses its links with political and social state development. On the other hand, there is a lack of academic studies on cultural policy after the 1990s. Where academic literature is lacking, I will use various non-governmental reports and other resources. Especially helpful will be the reports by the Council of Europe. It is important to acknowledge that the lack of academic resources on the subject can be a disadvantage to this thesis, but at the same time it highlights the need for this study. Methodology: This investigation was conducted using qualitative methods of analysis. Through the careful investigation only relevant, up-to date and informative books and articles have been selected. My primary sources will be official documents regarding culture published by the Soviet government, Lithuanian government and the EU. I will also use valuable memoirs and personal opinions of important people of the time in order to illustrate my arguments. Memoirs and newspaper articles presented some challenges, in terms of bias. However, this kind of material will provide the investigation with relevant insights into the events and allow seeing the events through the witnesses’ eyes. Thus, they can be a useful addition to scholarly works. To minimise the possible bias that these materials might bring to this research, only well-known and respected newspapers and memoirs were used. My secondary sources will be historical/political books and journal articles, which would provide me with the information about the actual changes in society. I am aiming to use information about various controversial events, discussions and propaganda as examples. As I will study three different periods of time, I will be able to apply discourse analysis and see how national culture was positioned vs. Soviet culture and vs. European culture. 6 Laisve Linkute 10394192 Literature: My analysis was supported by various kinds of sources. I will mostly rely on the official documents regarding culture published by the Soviet government, official documents published by Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania and also documents published by the EU. Some of the literature that I used was in Lithuanian. Being a native Lithuanian speaker I had no problems analysing the documents in their original language. I was able to access the documents published by Lithuanian government, and the EU easily. Moreover, I used some Lithuanian academic journals which I accessed via university library. To mention but a few: LIMES: Cultural Regionalistics, Philosophy. Sociology, Central Europe. Moreover, two books are worth mentioning too: The Baltic States and the End of the Soviet Empire by Gerner and Hedlund (1993) and The Baltic States: Years of Dependence 1940-1990 by Misiunas and Taagepera (1993). While both studies accurately depict the most important moments of the Soviet regime in Lithuania, the latter one is also almost always cited by other academics writing about the Baltic countries and the Soviet Union. I will also rely on the reports by Council of Europe completed in 1997 and 2010. These reports provide useful information about the changes in the field of culture during the time. It is a pity that there is no academic research specifically addressing the topic of cultural policy in Lithuania during the two decades of independence. Thus the field of cultural policy in Lithuania is still relatively unexplored and remains a fertile ground for future research. Structure: The thesis will be structured around the three chapters, each one of them focusing on a different period
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  • 1: Introduction
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