nr 8/2016 ISSN 2300-1690 władzasądzenia Identities, Media and Literature in Ukraine and about Ukraine: Contemporary Situation pod redakcją and Historical Dimension Nadii Trach Who are we and where do we go? Contemporary Ukrainians in search of their identities introduction NADIYA TRACH n a postmodern world, every person carries be the main reason for a lasting Russian- several types of identity, using them accord- Ukrainian war, or if the explicit markers are Iing to social situations and the social roles actually brought up by the implicit conflict played within them. The issues of identities of business interests or other non-identity become especially important in the times of related reasons. Nevertheless, the issues of dif- social anxiety and tensions, when the sense of ferent identity types – primarily national and belonging to a certain community or nation transnational (European and post-Soviet), but assists in overcoming these negative emotions. also gender, social, regional, religious are on Naturally, in the case of military conflicts the is- the agenda of public debates in Ukraine and sues of identity are on the agenda, while in the about Ukraine abroad, including in Europe and period of war they become even more acute, North America. as even the world picture undergoes changes An ongoing decommunization in the and finally tends to be divided into two parts: Southeastern Ukraine has changed the linguis- black and white, ours and enemies. tic and cultural cityscapes. Furthermore, the “Who are we and where do we go?” These democratic reforms in various social realms two main questions were on the minds of have proven the European choice of Ukraine. Ukrainians for centuries, and in the last two- Volodymyr Kulyk described the main trends three years they have been heard more often in identities changes that took place in the and more vividly. It was a revolutionary protest last few years: The very meaning of belonging known as “Maidan” that became a turning to a Ukrainian nation has changed; this change point in a contemporary Ukrainian history. was most vividly manifested in an increased To some extent, the revolution became alienation from Russia and a greater embrace of possible due to enormous efforts of journal- Ukrainian nationalism as a worldview and, ac- ists and media workers. Soon after that, the cordingly, as a historical narrative (Kulyk, 2015, Russian annexation of Crimea and a military p. 607). aggression in Donbas provoked the battles Media and literature are the main domains of identities. Hence, today historians argue for identity construction and representation, whether this confrontation of identities may for they play the role of idea communicators Introduction 5 and narrative transmitters, while also being processes? How has it been reflected in following article, Yulia Soroka presents the In a collective contribution to this volume the major instruments to unite people: Hence, a mass-media language? strategies of naturalization and denaturaliza- prepared by Yuliia Hnit, Lyudmyla Males, the identities and issues identified are as much ▶ What is the image of Ukraine and an tion in Facebook posts on the current events Bogdan Motuyenko, Victor Rymzha and about who takes it up, in what manner it is taken average Ukrainian in your national media in Ukraine. Indeed, Facebook has become Nataliia Freik, the authors focus their research up, and to whom communication is communi- (press, television, radio, and social media)? a new place for discourses and identities bat- interest on a crucial in the times of military cated (Djenar, Mahboob, Cruickshank, 2014, What linguistic markers have been used tles. It is a well-known fact that the Revolution conflict point – the Ukrainian-Russian mutual p. 6). Media and literature could be also seen to describe Ukraine and Ukrainians in the of Dignity began with a Facebook post of images. Showing these issues in a comparative as a range of semiotic resources, many of which state of a de facto war? Which topics are a Ukrainian journalist Mustafa Naiem, and still paradigm encompassing 15 years, this article are multimodal (Paltridge, 2014, p. 23) that popular to be covered about Ukraine? social networks keep being an arena for nego- gives a reader the understanding of how the contribute to development and strengthening With what connotation (neutral, positive, tiations of attitudes, values and identities. This post-imperial national identities are formed, of various identities. Finally, identity is made negative) are journalistic statements and piece of scholarly work underlines the impor- and in which manner a conflict changes the visible and intelligible to others through cultural conclusions made? tance of reflection on this type of new media images of heroes and enemies. Furthermore, signs, symbols and practices (Ciepiela, 2011, and its influence on a mass audience. Iuliia Vyshnytska sees identity as an important p. 10). We received articles from the scholars in Further on in this volume, Zhanna component in constructing mythological The task of this volume is to answer the fol- various fields – sociologists, linguists, media Bezpiatchuk demonstrates the similarities scenarios in a contemporary Ukrainian journal- lowing questions: analysts, and literature scholars. This diversity and difference in symbolic representations ism. How can a conflict provoke the division of ▶ Has Maidan actualized the existing of views, domains and approaches gives a ho- of Maidan in Ukrainian and Polish press. Her a world picture into “ours” and “enemies” and identities or created the new ones? How listic mosaic picture of the current processes in analysis reveals the ten most visible symbols of what are the linguistic markers and discourse has it been mirrored in the rhetoric of the the political, social and cultural life of Ukraine. Maidan and their different representations by clusters used to describe this division? The protest and its media coverage within We included to this volume not only the arti- media. Being linked to the theory of symbols main clusters revealed by the author are Ukraine and abroad? cles that refer to the present events, but also and illustrated with the numerous examples geocultural, colonial and postcolonial. On the ▶ How is the Russian-Ukrainian ongoing those studies that share a historical dimension. of media contexts, this article represents an material of the essays, the elements of the war affecting construction of identities? In We do believe that historical analysis enables in-depth reflection of how the complex reality scenarios are depicted and analyzed. which way is the image of enemy created a deeper understanding of the present state of current events is transmitted via media that On the material of the social networks posts, on both sides of the barricades? What of affairs, as it sheds light on how the current shows internal and external viewpoints. Anja Tetiana Monakhova also reflects on the issues are the linguistic models to describe the identities have been shaped, reshaped, and Lange undertakes another foreign perspec- of identity representation. Three text-building situation and the participants of conflict in negotiated, what factors caused a conflict, tive on a Euromaidan media coverage. On the strategies in identity construction are ob- different media? Does identity construction what are the possible ways to find its solution, material taken from the three German weekly served by the author – narodnik, modernist become a part of information war? and, finally, how identities have been an- newspapers and applying content-analysis and postmodernist with the dominance of ▶ How has the conflict changed various types chored to cultural and memory policies. as the main research tool, she examines what neonarodnik within the frame of contempo- of identities, i.e. gender, social, linguistic, To begin with, Oleh Ivanov in his article political figures and players were the key rary social networks. Linguistic markers of cultural, religious etc? How has the conflicts examines the tendencies and strategies in personalities in Euromaidan depicting, which each model are described in detail. In the of identities been described by media? the sphere of Ukrainian foreign policy, as well revolutionary events triggered media inter- next study, Olga Tuluzakova on the material ▶ How are reforms transmitted by media? as its formation and communicating from est to Ukraine, and, finally, which historical of Ukrainian modern texts, demonstrates how What vision of the future and expectations political elites to general public. A compara- and geopolitical context these events were sociopolitical changes are mirrored in con- of an average Ukrainian are portrayed tive analysis conducted by the author calls put into. In my contribution to this volume, temporary vocabulary of Ukrainian language, and constructed in media? In what way attention to the crucial changes that differenti- I emphasize the role of language in identity re- which lexical groups are actualized, as well as is the Soviet past deconstructed in public ate the periods after the Orange revolution negotiation during the Maidan events. On the how word’s connotation created by contem- debates on decommunization within 2004 on the one hand and after Euromaidan material of revolutionary slogans, I show how porary Ukrainian authors change the word’s a state? 2013–2014 on the other. On the other side, the issues of identities and values have been meaning and its perception, and in a broader ▶ Are identity issues anchored to political the article shows the continuity of Ukrainian actualized during the conflict and how linguis- sense influences the readers’ identities. decisions and debates? How do the right political process and clarifies the models of tic creativity and protesters’ self-expression Turning to historical dimension, Liudmyla and left wing political parties influence political communication used in Ukraine made these changes visible to general public Pidkuimukha explores formation of gen- contemporary identity construction particularly for international readers. In the and the world community. der identities in a concrete historical Introduction 7 period – a multicultural interwar Lviv.