In this Book
- Struggle over Identity: The Official and the Alternative "Belarusianness"
- Book
- 2010
- Published by: Central European University Press
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
- Introduction
- pp. 1-10
- PART I. NATION IN THEORY
- 2. State and Nation
- pp. 27-31
- PART II. THE RISE AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE BELARUSIAN NATIONAL IDEA
- PART III. BELARUSIAN POST-COMMUNISM
- 9. “Labels” of the Belarusian Regime
- pp. 93-97
- 10. “Triple Transformation” and Belarus
- pp. 99-120
- PART IV. ARGUMENTS AND PARADOXES OF WEAK BELARUSIAN IDENTITY
- 14. The Paradox of “National Pride”
- pp. 145-150
- PART V. THE STRUGGLE OVER IDENTITY
- 17. Two Ideas of “Belarusianness”
- pp. 163-168
- PART VI. CULTURAL MANIFESTATION VERSUS SOCIAL REIFICATION
- Conclusion
- pp. 277-282
- Bibliography
- pp. 283-301