Struggle over Identity : : The Official and the Alternative "Belarusianness" / / Nelly Bekus.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Central European University Press eBook-Package 2013-1998
• VerfasserIn: Bekus, Nelly,
• Place / Publishing House: Budapest ;, New York : : Central European University Press, , [2022]; ©2010
• Year of Publication: 2022
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (312 p.)

Rejecting the cliché about "weak identity and underdeveloped nationalism," Bekus argues for the co-existence of two parallel concepts of Belarusianness—the official and the alternative one—which mirrors the current state of the Belarusian people more accurately and allows for a different interpretation of the interconnection between the democratization and nationalization of Belarusian society.The book describes how the ethno-symbolic nation of the Belarusian nationalists, based on the cultural capital of the Golden Age of the Belarusian past (17th century) competes with the "nation" institutionalized and reified by the numerous civic rituals and social practices under the auspices of the actual Belarusian state.Comparing the two concepts not only provides understanding of the logic that dominates Belarusian society's self-description models, but also enables us to evaluate the chances of alternative Belarusianness to win this unequal struggle over identity.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- TABLE OF CONTENTS -- INTRODUCTION -- PART I NATION IN THEORY -- CHAPTER 1 Nation-Formation Strategies in Contemporary Nation-Studies -- CHAPTER 2 State and Nation -- CHAPTER 3 Nationalism, Capitalism, Liberalism: The East European Perspective -- CHAPTER 4 Nationalism and Socialism: The Soviet Case -- PART II THE RISE AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE BELARUSIAN NATIONAL IDEA -- CHAPTER 5 The First Belarusian Nationalist Movement: Between National and Class Interests -- CHAPTER 6 Byelorussian Republic within the Soviet State -- CHAPTER 7 Post-Soviet Conditions for Independence -- PART III BELARUSIAN POSTCOMMUNISM -- CHAPTER 8 The Election of the First Belarusian President as a Mirror of Belarusian Preferences -- CHAPTER 9 “Labels” of the Belarusian Regime -- CHAPTER 10 “Triple Transformation” and Belarus -- CHAPTER 11 Prerequisites of Democratization and Authoritarianism in Belarus -- PART IV ARGUMENTS AND PARADOXES OF WEAK BELARUSIAN IDENTITY -- CHAPTER 12 Belarus as an Example of National and Democratic Failure -- CHAPTER 13 The Russian Factor in Belarusian Self-Perception -- CHAPTER 14 The Paradox of “National Pride” -- CHAPTER 15 Paradoxes of Political and Linguistic Russification -- CHAPTER 16 Lack of Religious Basis for National Unity -- PART V STRUGGLE OVER IDENTITY -- CHAPTER 17 Two Ideas of “Belarusianness” -- CHAPTER 18 Belarusian-Specific Nature of the Public Sphere: “Invisible Wall” -- CHAPTER 19 Belarusian History: The Alternative and Official Historical Narrations -- CHAPTER 20 Political Discourses of the Alternative Belarusianness -- CHAPTER 21 National Ideology of the Belarusian State as a Political Articulation of Official Belarusianness -- PART VI CULTURAL MANIFESTATION VERSUS SOCIAL REIFICATION -- CHAPTER 22 Two Approaches to the Politics of Identity -- CHAPTER 23 Belaruski Globus: An Encyclopedia of What Existed before Communism -- CHAPTER 24 The Belarusian National Film Misterium Occupation: Distancing themselves from Soviets and Russians -- CHAPTER 25 The “Free Theater” or the Alternative Belarusianness on Stage -- CHAPTER 26 Independent Rock Music: Critical Reflection and Protest -- CHAPTER 27 Medieval Reenactors: A Manifestation of Belarus’s European History -- CHAPTER 28 The Official Politics of Identity: Social Reification Strategy -- CONCLUSION -- BIBLIOGRAPHY -- INDEX