Cultural Trauma Research Articles

Pesak i sneg filmskog sećanja - Novosadska racija

The aim of the paper is to map the transformation of historical and cultural trauma - "when an entire city ended up under the ice" - that restored collective memories of the city to the transnational memory and narratives of absolute victims, and to show the transformation through the analysis of Cold Days (András Kovács, Hungary) and Monument (1967, Miroslav Antić, SFRY). Their complementary narratives about the Novi Sad raid, told from different national perspectives, opposing perceptions of victims and perpetrators, from the point of view of generations and postgenerations (the author of this text belonging to the latter), side by side with titles that only touch on a topic, like The Jews are Coming (Prvoslav Marić, 1991, SFRY) and Hourglass (Szabolcs Tolnai, 2007, SFRY), become, at the same time, spaces for inscribing the intricate dialectic of ethnicisation and de-ethnicisation of memory and a cultural framework that shapes images of the past and interpretations of history. In the same vein, the paper uses three theoretical interpretive frameworks - "violence as a generative force in the Balkans" (Max Bergholz, 2016); transnational remembrance and absolute victims and "memory and complicity" (Debarati Sanyal, 2015) - which open up new readings of the past and writing history in films, in line with the contemporary political context. The paper recognises the mentioned de-ethnicisation as a shift from ethnic to ethic, marked by the eth/n/ic word play, and thus connected with the fundamental question of identity and the relationship between identity and memory. At the same time, shaping the memory of the individual and the memory of different social groups to which he / she belongs in the collective memory, testifies to how the latter "became a powerful symbol of numerous political and social transitions" that require individuals to (re)position themselves in society.

COVID-19 through a cultural lens

COVID-19 through a cultural lens

Osobennosti kollektivnoy pamyati rossiyskikh koreytsev: travma deportatsii

The article is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of the collective memory of Russian Koreans about the deportation of 1937. The author’s goal is a meaningful analysis of the semantic and sociopsychological aspects of the memory of deportation among different generations of Koreans, the nature of their experience of historical events, the degree of reflection, as well as the influence of memory on their social well-being and definition of identity. The methodological basis of the research is the theory of cultural trauma of Alexander, the conception of collective memory of Eyerman, the historical memory of Assman, and the structure of ethnic identity of Shnirelman. The method of empirical research is an in-depth biographical interview. Results: features of the collective memory of Russian Koreans were revealed; semantic aspects of the memory of deportation among different generations of Koreans are highlighted: the trauma of a lack of freedom; loss of identity; the decapitalization of the ancestral experience; a tendency towards conformism and loyalty to the current government; avoidance of critical assessments of deportation and its consequences. The necessity of a comprehensive study of social and cultural trauma by the Korean community is substantiated. The article is based on field materials — interviews with representatives of three generations of Russian Koreans, conducted by the author in 2020 in Yekaterinburg.

The Sociocultural Trauma of Forced Migration and Displacement

Trauma occurs when individuals or groups encounter a horrific experience that leads to enduring imprints on their consciousness and memory, and results in a crucial alteration in how they perceive their identity, social surrounding, and even their future. The concept of trauma is firmly connected to war, conflict, and forced migration. Refugees face catastrophic life events when everything breaks apart. In recent years, there has been an increased interest in exploring trauma from different approaches, including sociological ones. Therefore, this article aims to review, explore, and analyze the concepts of cultural trauma, collective identity, and social trauma regarding the issue of refugees’ forced migration. The first part of the study focuses on reviewing related literature on cultural trauma and collective identity. Then, I investigate the concept of social trauma by considering forced migration, the host communities, the identity of forced migrants, and the role of the carrier groups. In this way, I attempt to present a comprehensive analysis of forced displacement from a sociocultural perspective.

MENTAL HEALTH AFTER TRAUMA: INDIVIDUAL AND COLLECTIVE DIMENSIONS.

The aim: The article is devoted to uncovering the essence of the trauma, identifying the cause of its formation, and investigating the consequences for the person and the community. Materials and methods: The methodological basis of the given study is the interdisciplinary and hermeneutic approach, which was used in combination with the methods of retrospective, analysis, synthesis, and extrapolation, as well as the methodological apparatus of memory studies with its inherent intention of the problem of group identity formation. A prominent place in the process of writing the work played the method of critical literature review. Sources reflecting research on individual and collective dimensions of trauma were found in PubMed, Scopus, and Google Scholar. Research articles were found using the keywords "trauma", "traumatic experience", "victim", "violence", "collective trauma", "cultural trauma", "memory", etc. Conclusions: Modern studies of traumatic experience are inextricably linked with the scientific work of Sigmund Freud, who was one of the first to explicate trauma as a destroyer of "protection". This gave reason to modern researchers to consider it an emotional reaction of the psyche to mental, physical, or cultural violence directed against the identity of an individual or an entire community. Whether inflicted on an individual or a community as a whole, trauma invariably seeks testimony in order to produce meanings and mechanisms capable of preventing violence and preserving the mental health of both the individual and the community as a whole.

Racial Trauma in Civil Rights Representation

Narratives of trauma told by clients and communities of color have inspired an increasing number of civil rights and antiracist lawyers and academics to call for more trauma-informed training for law students and lawyers. These advocates have argued not only for greater trauma-sensitive practices and trauma-centered interventions on behalf of adversely impacted individuals and groups but also for greater awareness of the risks of secondary or vicarious trauma for lawyers who represent traumatized clients and communities. In this Article, we join this chorus of attorneys and academics. Harnessing the recent civil rights case of P.P. v. Compton Unified School District, we illustrate how trauma-informed lawyering can both advance civil rights and provide healing for affected communities and individuals. In so doing, we focus our analysis on the use of racial trauma evidence in the Compton school litigation specifically and in contemporary civil rights representation more generally. Building on our prior work on race, cultural trauma, and civil rights lawyering, we investigate the meaning of racial trauma for individual, group, and community clients and for their legal teams while detailing the importance of establishing a trauma-informed practice for today’s civil rights lawyers. This litigation-based investigation shows that sociolegal meaning is bound up in the struggle to accommodate community violence-centered racial trauma advocacy within traditional lawyering processes and legal ethics frameworks. Often overlooked, that ethical and professional struggle affects the form and substance of lawyer decisionmaking and discretion in civil rights cases.

Il cinema italiano del secondo dopoguerra e la controversa questione della discontinuità: nuove strade, antichi territori?

The article focuses on the Italian cinema in building collective memory in post-war transitional phase. It tackles neorealist humanism and descriptive style, together with its obliteration of Fascism. These features contribute to ‘cultural trauma’: a symbolic activity reshaping collective identity. Finally, the article scrutinizes non-fiction works representing a contested area, in political and historical terms: Trieste. This final pace sheds light on the degree of diffusion of cultural trauma and clarifies how the concealment of Fascism operated as parapraxis.

Marital Practices of the Nahuas and Imposed Sociocultural Change in Sixteenth-Century Mexico

AbstractThere are many sources that allowed scholars to study the nature and functions of polygamous marriages of the Nahua nobility. Very few studies, however, focus on the marital relations of the Nahua commoners. This article presents exploratory research into various kinds of marriages of the macehualtin—polygamy, sororate, and levirate. Based on the available material (early censuses, inquisitorial records, sixteenth-century accounts) it discusses the functions that these types of unions played in Nahua society. Moreover, it reflects on the effects that the Christianization and prohibition of such marriages had on Nahua society. The Nahuas could either reshape their communities, by adjusting to the new rules, or continue their precolonial practices in hiding. Either way, the imposed Christianization can be analyzed through the notion of the cultural trauma, which occurred when the Nahuas were forced to reshape their communities to adjust to the new rules.

Национальная политика развития перед лицом глобальных вызовов: ирландский “маятник”

Divided societies project new cleavages into the contemporary divided world. Assessing cleavages as drivers of social change and evaluating their positive potential versus evident negative impacts is a key element in forecasting prospects of social development. The paper addresses social and economic statistical data, opinion polls and academic research input of the past decade to prove the need to balance tradition and innovation and combine tangible and intangible assets to support the progress of national and local communities. The trend to reduce social inequalities is an important criterion for evaluating the strategic consistency of such policies, whereas the main contextual factor important for their success is the dynamics of support for these policies and the engagement of citizens and communities in their implementation. The example of Ireland as a society that has managed to integrate divisions of the nation and of its historic territory into its development strategies and to promote past cultural traumas as drivers of social cohesion with a long-lasting effect is a representative case in this sense. This case is relevant for explaining the pendulum effects of economic development that can be compensated by consistent social policies, and by recurring to intangible cultural resources and diaspora support to promote an inclusive national identity. Ongoing deep transformations of the existing world order are creating new political spaces, and recourse to intangible resources of development may stimulate a reevaluation of the current conflictual political agenda.

Birthplaces of Our Fear: Reception of Yuri Dud’s Documentary “Kolyma” in Social Media

The article examines reception of the online documentary "Kolyma — the birthplace of our fear" (produced by journalist Yuri Dud in 2019) in social networks. In their comments, internet users regard other topics along with the Soviet repressions, to which the film is dedicated. They discuss the traumatic experience of the recent past, namely the late Soviet period, the collapse of the USSR, the 1990s, and contemporary problems. As a result of analysis of YouTube comments, we identify two trauma narratives. The first narrative is based on the idea of violation of civil human rights, the second focuses on the violation of socio-economic rights. Different topics appear in comments and posts on social media depending on which rights viewers consider key and which they pay more attention to when watching the documentary. In the case of civil rights, these include contemporary political repressions in Russia, names of famous political prisoners, references to recent protests. In the case of socio-economic rights, these topics include privatization, oligarchs, economic reforms, inequality. Those users who comment about the violation of socio-economic rights generally express a positive attitude towards the USSR and a critical attitude towards capitalism. Topics such as corruption or the problems of the penitentiary system in Russia are “inbetween” — they are important symbols in both narratives. The study clarifies how the cultural trauma narrative of the recent past and present-day events is formed. We also demonstrate how this process takes place on social media, and how social media enables participation of ordinary users and not only public figures.

PHILOSOPHY AS AN AGORA OF CULTURAL DIALOGUE: MEETING OF MARTIN HEIDEGGER AND PAUL CELAN

Philosophy as poetry and praxis, as agora of cultural dialogue is considered. Based on hermeneutic analysis of one of Paul Celan’s poems (“Todtnaubeg”), the possibity of a dialogue between twentieth‐century philosophy (Martin Heidegger) and twentieth‐century poetry (Paul Celan) in the agora of public philosophizing has been established. Paul Celan was comforted by philosophy (euphrasia). It turns out that philosophy is always more than philosophers, this is the main lesson learnt by the author of the poem “Todtnaubeg”. It is shown that anthropological issues are always broader than individual discourses, although even in individual works (treatise, poem) we can find a whole rang of such discourses. The poet dedicates poem "Todtnaberg" to the turning point in his life and development of twentieth‐century philosophy (meeting with the most famous and influential twentieth‐century philosopher Martin Heidegger). Philosophy is seen as a complex combination of poetry and praxis, diverse discourses, as a place of cultural dialogue and a therapy for cultural trauma. Paul Celan needed such consolation (euphrasia) by philosophy, and he received it from philosophy and philosophical communication in general, and not from Martin Heidegger (the reasons for distortion of communication and integrity of dialogical discourse are considered). Unfortunately, Heidegger himself was not always ready for such a dialogue, but his philosophy acts on his behalf, complementing the words of poetry, the very situation of an agora is based on freedom of philosophical thought, at the top of Mountain of the Dead or the Magic Mountain, the main thing is that they maintain humanity and openness to the Other Voice which can be heard from any top. Language provides an opportunity not only to express but also to create ‐ to reproduce the unity of the world, unity of the sacred and being, meaning of the Logos significantly deepens both the philosophy of language and the theory of performativity in the creative, therapeutic function of the Word. Logos imparts truth and comprehensiveness to the statement. This provides an opportunity for not an objective but an ontological identity which through the word reveals the unity of being, overcomes its rupture and trauma.

IDENTITY TRANSFORMATION OF THE UKRAINIAN DONBAS: FROM THE “WILD FIELD” TO RUSSIAN OCCUPATION

"The population of the Ukrainian Donbas before the beginning of Russian war aggression had a particular regional identity that, apart from boundary characteristics, has a significant “Soviet” component. Russian aggression has led to the mass exodus of at least 1.5 million citizens with a dominant Ukrainian identity to Ukrainian-controlled territory. At the same time, the Ukrainian mnemonic space is being completely cleansed in the temporarily occupied territories. The Russian model of historical memory bizarrely combines imperial, Soviet, and occupation components. Today, the identity of the sub-occupation population is undergoing a significant transformation, which creates an increasing distance from other Ukrainian citizens, even in the liberated territories of Donbas. However, the hybrid nature of this identity makes it ambivalent, unstable. Moreover, in a state of crisis, the population has suffered several waves of cultural trauma. Divided political loyalties are maintained and strengthened. The article has analysed the functioning of historical consciousness as a key identity marker of different groups, both before the occupation of these territories and today."

Surviving Crisis: The Napoleonic Upheavals and the ‘Time of the French’ as Cultural Trauma in Prussia, 1806–1812

Historians have dismantled the myth of the Wars of Liberation as a general, nationalist uprising of the German people against French invaders. Nevertheless, analyses still focus on a connection between a bellicose nationalism and the ‘positive’ emotions of military victory. This article shifts the focus toward the preceding military defeat, occupation, and catastrophe in Prussia. The theory of cultural trauma provides a means of uncovering the very real emotion of fear that drove debate within the public, military, and political spheres. Examining two main groups, nationalists and conservatives, this article argues that each group experienced defeat and occupation as a cultural trauma, but drew different lessons from the past and contrasting visions of the future to overcome trauma — though unexpectedly, military victory did not erase the trauma. This analysis has wider significance for the history of emotions and specifically for the study of the intersection of nationalism and emotion.

Small Homeland in the Context (Space) of Civil Identity

Introduction. The article analyzes the place, role and functions of the concept of a small homeland in the construction of civil identity. The starting point of the study is the understanding of a small homeland as a set of ideas and practices of the belonging of individuals and groups to the space of the place of birth, origin and primary socialization. A small homeland is what emotionally and practically unites citizens in their loyal affection to the place – physical and symbolic.Methodology and sources. Based on the general concept of the space of places (A. Lefebvre, M. Castells, T. Cresswell, M. Auger); P. Shtompka's theory of cultural trauma and A.O. Boronoev's ideas of structural schematization of a small homeland, it is originally presented a sociological analysis of the problem of the loss of a small homeland as a result of forced relocations (the case of flooded areas). As relevant sources the author use the documents and memoirs on the phenomenon of the loss of a small homeland; also on memories of eyewitnesses, and on artistic reflection of farewell to the place of birth. The purpose of the study is to identify the role of the loss of a small homeland in the functioning and reproduction of the civic identity of the place.Results and discussion. As a result of the study it has been shown that the loss of a small homeland determines: a) the rupture of social and cultural ties; b) the emergence of grassroots self-organization of Mologzhan activists who are re-constructing civic urban identity; c) production of commemorative practices of a regular type (cases of Mologa and Circassian auls); d) active formation of cultural discourse in which the small homeland of the place is positioned as a subjective value and one of the foundations of the life world.Conclusion. A small homeland as a representation and social practice in the space of civic identity ensures through its agents the reproduction of social interaction (real or imaginary) with a place and the maintenance of socio-cultural ties with it within the natural and cultural landscape of communities. It also promotes recognition, confirmation of the identity of the place. The loss of a small homeland (physical and symbolic) gives rise to various social practices of memory, rebirth and oblivion.

Bringing Political Upheaval and Cultural Trauma into Order: A Document-Theoretical Approach to the Social Significance of Bibliographic Classification Systems

This paper explores the ability to define bibliographic classification systems as socially significant documents in a way that goes beyond their immediate function in the information retrieval process. It does so in dialog with theory on documents and documentality, and knowledge organization theory. Two examples show how development of new classification systems address social and cultural structures in periods of rapid social and cultural change and crisis. The first example discusses the design of a classification system for Swedish public libraries in the late 1910s, and the second addresses the re-formulation of the Holocaust experience in American Jewish library classification practice in the 1950s and 1960s. Results indicate that social significance to classification systems influence the definition their institutional context in relation to wider social issues and movements. The character of this influence suggests research on documentality needs to address the relation between form and content in documents defined as reifications of social acts.

December – 1986: Evaluation, Causes and Representation in Art

The authors of the article make an attempt to analyze the events that took place on December 17–18, 1986 in the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic, using the methodology of “cultural trauma”. The December events are defined as a multifaceted social and humanitarian problem. It is shown that the December events must be assessed comprehensively as a historical, social, humanitarian phenomenon. The reasons for the December events were determined by the dismissal of Dinmukhamed Akhmedovich Kunayev, the crisis of communist political ideology, the political, economic voluntarism of totalitarian power, the narrowing of the scope of the Kazakh language, the ecological crisis of Soviet Kazakhstan, the emergence of the history of the third generation of the Soviet people. In general, the December events are viewed as an open form of healing the mental wounds of the Kazakh people inflicted by the administrative decisions of the Soviet red empire. Despite the fact that the December events as a social phenomenon are more than a quarter of a century old, the Decembrists and their activity do not leave the agenda in the public consciousness. The importance of using the December events as a universal tool in the formation of various forms of social practice is growing. The conceptualization of this point of view in the article is determined by the representation of the lessons of the December events in contemporary Kazakh art (sculpture, cinema, literature, theater). At the same time, the article also shows that the representation of the December events in art is the form and content of the “healing” of the trauma of the December events.

Calculative practices, social movements and the rise of collective identity: how #istayathome mobilised a nation

PurposeThe Italian government addressed the first wave of its COVID-19 outbreak with a series of social restrictions and calculative practices, all branded with the slogan #istayathome. The hashtag quickly went viral, becoming both a mandate and a mantra and, as the crisis played out, we witnessed the rise of the Italian social movement #istayathome. This study examines how the government's calculative practices led to #istayathome and the constituents that shaped this social movement.Design/methodology/approachThe authors embrace social movement theory and the collective identity perspective to examine #istayathome as a collective action and social movement. Using passive netnography, text mining and interpretative text analysis enhanced by machine learning, the authors analysed just over 350,000 tweets made during the period March to May 2020, each brandishing the hashtag #istayathome.FindingsThe #istayathome movement gained traction as a response to the Italian government's call for collective action. Thus, people became an active part of mobilising collective responsibility, enhancing the government's plans. A collective identity on the part of the Italian people sustained the mass mobilisation, driven by cohesion, solidarity and a deep cultural trauma from COVID-19's dramatic effects. Popular culture and Italy's long traditions also helped to form the collective identity of #istayathome. This study found that calculative practices acted as a persuasive technology in forming this collective identity and mobilising people's collective action. Numbers stimulated the cognitive, moral and emotional connections of the social ties shaping collective identity and responsibility. Thus, through collective identity, calculative practices indirectly influenced mass social behaviors and the social movement.Originality/valueThis study offers a novel theoretical perspective and empirical knowledge to explain how government power affects people's culture and everyday life. It unveils the sociological drivers that mobilise collective behaviors and enriches the accounting literature on the effects of calculative practices in managing emergencies. The study contributes to theory by providing an understanding of how calculative practices can influence collective behaviors and can be used to construct informal networks that go beyond the government's traditional formalities.

The Right to Meaning: A Syrian Case Study

This article unsettles what the literature describes as the ‘central paradox’ of cultural trauma theory: the idea that while atrocities are most prevalent in the ‘non-western world’, successful cultural traumas have primarily emerged in western societies. Examining the engagement of exiled Syrian intellectuals with the traumatic events of the 2011 revolution-turned-war in their country, the author argues that it is not a failure in the ‘cultural trauma process’ itself that prevents horrific events in non-western contexts from becoming recognised as cultural traumas. Instead, it is the failure to translate narratives of wrongdoing into formal acknowledgements and material or symbolic reparations. This failure is articulated by Syrian intellectuals as a ‘denial of meaning’. Many Syrian intellectuals construed the emancipatory demands of the Syrian uprising as claims for a right to meaning, that is, demands to restore language and existential purpose through public engagement and the revival of politics and speech. Equally, they saw as ‘denial of meaning’ the reality that their trauma work did not prevent the endurance and gradual rehabilitation of the regime but was met instead with the relegation of the movement to the agenda of the War on Terror. Thus, building on the discourses of exiled Syrian intellectuals, the article presents the idea of the right to meaning as a framework for understanding global inequality. Such a framework rests on a perceived dichotomy between those entitled to ‘meaning’ and those whose lives are accepted and treated as devoid of it or denied it.

Legacies of Slavery and their Enduring Harms

This article provides a much needed inquiry into the legacy of slavery from an interdisciplinary perspective, including the historical, socioeconomic, political, and the epistemic. It makes an important distinction between the legacy of slavery and its persisting damages. By investigating this legacy’s effects on peoples, communities, and societies, it highlights the imperative of situating the pains and sufferings of historical traumas within contemporary structural oppression and institutional discrimination that have perpetuated these harms. The article consists of four sections: it first outlines the legacy of slavery, comprised in instrumentalizing black bodies for economic gains, employing political aggression to colonize both lands and minds, applying racialized discourse to demean and dehumanize, and oppressing people of African descent through structural violence. It then discusses the legacy’s injuries as transgenerational and cultural traumas, and how these wounds are experienced by the relevant communities. The third section focuses on racism as a significant harm, analyzing different forms of racism (internalized, interpersonal, and institutional) as interconnected and mutually reinforcing. To conclude, this article considers challenges in addressing the legacy of slavery and puts forward tentative ideas for collective healing.

The art episteme of national self-identification in the context of postcolonial cultural trauma

At the turn of the millennia, the narrative of the art sciences was enriched by an extensive analytical polylogue: from eschatological forecasts of the end of the crisis of theories and practices to the multicultural utopias of “global art”. A solid sector in this context is made up of trans-disciplinary studies of the problems of national self-identification and the revision of regional art epistemes in the new geocultural realities, in particular, those refracted in the field of postcolonial trauma of national consciousness discourse. This aspect is especially relevant for the countries of the post-Soviet space, because their cultural and artistic development is under the pressure of two equally traumatic paradigms: the Russification one belonging to the past, and the Westernization paradigm that declares itself to be the manifestation of democratic freedoms. However, each of them leads to amnesia in the historical and cultural memory of nations, threatening to collapse. Only a careful study of the causes and consequences of this civilizational phenomenon, as well as the study of the negative impact of the market ideology of the culture industry, will help to avoid depersonalization of national arts and cultures, while preserving the possibility of indigenous flourishing in the future. The article pinpoints the pain points identifies the sensitive issues in solving this problem by contemporary artists and critics from different countries, including Ukraine, leaving open the final effective fixation of the situation, which increases the catastrophic bifurcation by unstable development