Informal Nationalism After Communism
The Everyday Construction of Post-Socialist Identities
Jeremy Morris editor Abel Polese editor Emilia Pawłusz editor Oleksandra Seliverstova editor
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Published:30th Mar '18
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
A much-needed analysis of the gap between state policy and on-the-ground reality that will be invaluable to both academics and policymakers.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, nation building and identity construction in the post-socialist region have been the subject of extensive academic research. The majority of these studies have taken a 'top-down' approach - focusing on the variety of ways in which governments have sought to define the nascent nation states - and in the process have often oversimplified the complex and overlapping processes at play across the region. Drawing on research on the Balkans, Central Asia, the Caucasus and Eastern Europe, this book focuses instead on the role of non-traditional, non-politicised and non-elite actors in the construction of identity. Across topics as diverse as school textbooks, turbofolk and home decoration, contributors - each an academic with extensive on-the-ground experience - identify and analyse the ways that individuals living across the post-socialist region redefine identity on a daily basis, often by manipulating and adapting state policy.In the process, Nation Building in the Post-Socialist Region demonstrates the necessity of holistic, trans-national and inter-disciplinary approaches to national identity construction rather than studies limited to a single-state territory. This is important reading for all scholars and policymakers working on the post-socialist region.
"This is an extremely interesting book which fills an important gap in the existing literature. The well-selected and inventive chapters cover a wide and diverse range of interrelated subjects and contribute clearly to shedding necessary light onto nation-building processes in the post-socialist area. The editors have managed to draw together a strong mix of junior and more senior scholars, and the book engages with current and relevant research in the field throughout." -- Filippo Menga, Lecturer in Human Geography, University of Reading, "What happens when post-socialism meets the everyday? This book is the answer. An excellent collection of studies showing the pluri-faceted nature of identity and how it may be performed by different actors in a variety of ways regardless of, or even in contrast to, state official narratives." - Marcello Mollica, Associate Professor of Cultural Anthropology and Ethnology, University of Messina, "This edited volume brings together different views on post-Socialist identity from an everyday perspective. Going beyond the common state-centric approaches, contributors demonstrate the centrality of the individual and everyday practices in identity construction and reconfiguration. In the process, they break new ground and shed important light onto how these processes have (re)shaped identity markers in the post-Socialist region. This will be stimulating reading for a broad audience." - Maria Raquel Freire, Jean Monnet Chair, University of Coimbra
ISBN: 9781784539412
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: unknown
336 pages