National Narratives Research Articles

Ukrainian Waste for the Soviet Economy: Shaping the National Narrative

The environmental history of Ukraine in the twentieth century is replete with various and still understudied facets. However, contemporary research predominantly employs imperial narratives, which elucidate it through the prism of Soviet history, depriving it of subjectivity and the uniqueness of the local context. This essay proposes an alternative approach. Through the example of waste recycling in the Ukrainian SSR, which was one of the Soviet republics from 1922 to 1991, we aim to demonstrate the importance of reinterpreting its environmental history by studying multi-vector centre–periphery relations in the Soviet Union. This case seeks to demonstrate not only the formation in the 1920s of Soviet colonial practices of resource extraction, including that of waste, from the periphery – the Soviet republics – but also attempts to resist these in the first decade of the Soviet totalitarian regime’s formation. This essay is based on documents from Ukrainian archives, which are introduced into scholarly circulation for the first time, and on statistical collections of documents from the USSR.

Sinicizing China’s World Muslim City: Spatial Politics, National Narratives, and Ethnoreligious Assimilation in the PRC

Abstract The nation-state is as much a narrative and ideational project as it is a spatial-territorial one. In the People’s Republic of China, Xi Jinping’s calls to “revitalize” China’s traditional culture, “Sinicize” religions, and “rejuvenate” the Chinese nation reflect a broader effort to reframe the national narrative and strengthen Communist Party control. This article examines the implications of Xi’s revisionist nationalism for China’s fifty-five minority nationalities, in particular the Hui, one of ten Muslim minority groups. It does so by analyzing the rise and demise of World Muslim City (WMC), a development project in western China that mobilized Hui identity and traditions for economic and diplomatic purposes. WMC was facilitated by a multicultural national narrative and by a fragmented authoritarian political system that for many years fostered policy improvisation, and deviation, at the local level. Its suspension underscores the increasingly anti-Muslim, anti-religious tenor of PRC policy, as evidenced by the Sinicization campaign that was a proximate cause of WMC’s demise. Its demise also highlights ongoing efforts to reassert CCP control over government, business, and the Party’s own rank-and-file. The fate of WMC furthermore reveals the spatial dimensions of Sinicization, and of Chinese cultural governance past and present. To paraphrase theorist Henri Lefebvre, Sinicization entails “spatial practices” that impose Xi-ist “representations of space” on lived “representational spaces,” from mosques and businesses to theme parks and luxury resorts.

The visual construction of the people’s country and the Chinese nation: political aesthetics in the Ethno-documentaries of New China

This paper discusses the political positioning of the people and the cultural image of the Chinese nation through the lens of the Social-historical Scientific Documentary Films of China’s ethnic minorities (hereafter referred to as “the Ethno-documentaries”) by restoring the problem to the site of the investigation of humanities and social sciences and the General Surveys on (Folk) Arts in the early years of the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in the 1950s. Through detailed analysis of specific Ethno-documentary films, this paper explores how the social sciences conducted its “Social and Historical Investigation of China’s Ethnic Minorities” via the medium of film to convey the advanced social concepts and ideological work of the new regime through the historical narrative of art and politics. This study highlights three key points. First, the “Chinese nation” as a modern political concept dates its origins back to the 1920s with the emergence of the “National Heritage Reorganization Movement” and the “Doubting Antiquity School.” However, it was only through the medium of the Ethno-documentaries that this concept was visually and aurally represented in films for the first time, which draws our attention to the fact that the entry point for understanding modern China lies in discerning the relationship between culture and politics. Second, when discussing the relationship between culture and politics, this study juxtaposes the Ethno-documentaries and “art for workers-peasants-soldiers,” which developed during the same period. These two forms of art focus respectively on national history and the suffering of the lower classes of society, and it is this intertextual nature of the historical narrative that jointly anchors the cultural and historical view of New China. Lastly, historical view is the core of the humanities, social sciences, and art disciplines in New China. Previous studies have mainly attributed certain phenomena to the “politicization” or “pan-politicization” of a particular historical period due to disciplinary barriers and cultural trauma and have stopped discussing such topics in depth. In contrast, the significance of the political aesthetics in the Ethno-documentaries is to have transformed classical Chinese artistic language into a modern one to represent the Chinese people and the Chinese nation. It also raises a question of re-sinicization of many modern political issues that have persisted until now: How do today’s Chinese art works vividly depict the prosperity of this country and its hardworking and courageous people?

Between deep comradeship and nationalism: The social dynamics of solidarity on the battlefield

AbstractThis article explores the social mechanisms that facilitate the transformation of micro‐level bonds into coherent nationalist narratives of solidarity. The aim is to explain the paradox: while the armed forces are highly nationalist institutions, most ordinary combatants detest nationalist rhetoric on the battlefield. Drawing on the interviews with the combatants who fought in the 1991–1995 wars in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina together with the analysis of the mass media reports, I examine how deep bonds of micro‐solidarity forged in the violent experiences are transformed into coherent nationalist discourses. I explore how social ties generated in the protracted face‐to‐face interactions can be enveloped by the specific social organisations and then ‘translated’ into nationalist ideologies that project deep comradeship as ‘national solidarities’. I aim to show that the direct war experience does not automatically generate strong bonds of national solidarity. Instead, nationalism is always a product of protracted coercive‐organisational, ideological and micro‐interactional work.

Trespassing boundaries between national identities: the metamorphosis of Vojtech Tuka from a Hungarian academic to a Slovak prime minister

ABSTRACT Béla Tuka started his career as a Hungarian academic, but later he transformed into a Slovak nationalist politician, and renamed himself Vojtech Tuka. In 1939, he became the prime minister of the Nazi-oriented Slovak State. This study intends to reveal, how national narratives struggled to interpret this life path. After national explanations of trespassing the cultural boundaries between Slovak and Hungarian national identity did not prove to be coherent and convincing, the memory of Vojtech Tuka has been disregarded by both (opposing) national groups, mutually, since it questions the organic existence of nations and their boundaries.

Synchronous (In)significance: Recording Ukraine’s Cultural Heritage in Real-Time

ABSTRACT Synchronous (In)significance argues for the recognition of a mode of heritage conservation within war-torn Ukraine that is already underway. The paper examines the digital initiative Polycam: Backup Ukraine which allows for everyday users to record, upload and share three-dimensional scans of places, sites and objects that they deem significant within their immediate environment. This evolving contemporary archive is positioned by its founders as a tool for citizen empowerment through the shared availability of the technology and storage of items for heritage capture. The resulting collection provides an unconventional account of the sites, spaces and objects at risk in Ukraine, creating a constellation of high, local, formal and idiosyncratic personal entries. Through this portal, a broad and unsanctioned account of Ukrainian heritage is revealed. This paper draws on the work of Tracy Ireland, Steve Brown and John Schofield which examines the dichotomous relationship of significance and insignificance in the practice of value creation and negotiation of heritage identity. Through this lens it examines how notions of sharing; shared technology, shared ownership and shared access might allow for the creation of a contemporary heritage archive, that interacts with memory, place and things, but does so in ways that “are often not possible in the context of official heritage regimes because of rigid aesthetic paradigms, urban or class conflict, identity politics, or dominant national narratives.” 1 The archive, which draws together digital records of well-regarded heritage sites with unexpected spaces and objects of the personal and the everyday, becomes a means of assessing notions of significance and (in)significance in real-time. This in turn, provides a mechanism for re-evaluating what aspects of the war-torn country are considered worthy of recording and sharing.

History, Memory and Memorabilia: Kamala Dasgupta and the Politics of Remembering Revolutionary Bengal

ABSTRACT This paper examines the interplay between memory, history, nationalism, and visual cultures by focussing on a framed photograph of a revolver gifted to Kamala Dasgupta’s family by the Calcutta (Now Kolkata) police after Indian independence. Once used in an attempted assassination during the anti-colonial struggle, the revolver has become an anomaly in the nation’s collective memory – a ‘floating signifier’ with an unfixed meaning. Analysing the photograph as a media spectacle and a symbol within national myths, I argue that it disrupts linear narratives of progress that dominate nationalist historiography. The article shows how Kamala’s act of procuring the revolver has been overshadowed by her comrade Bina Das’s violent act. Drawing on theories of the spectacle, national temporality, and subaltern studies, I illustrate the selective commemoration of revolutionary violence in India. The research in this paper demonstrates how precarious and subaltern histories such as Kamala’s can destabilise established national narratives and pluralise temporal orders of the nation.

Agents of social change: cultural connections between Emirati women and camels

ABSTRACT This article considers experiences and interactions of Emirati women with camels, the latter being of the most culturally significant animals in the Emirates, entangled in compelling sociocultural and national narratives. No English-language publication thus far has prioritized female experiences in interacting with camels in the UAE, albeit tending to those animals is not an exclusively male domain. Emirati women’s presence around camels is explored in the context of riding, trekking, racing, inheriting and owning them. Tracking shifts in female experiences around camel-related culture is an essential component of the research. Camels can be perceived as agents of social change–their evolving sociocultural presence is indicative of broader transformations in the UAE. Female narratives centred around those animals describe old and entirely new contexts of their cultural existence. Camels appear, among others, as central figures of heritage revival processes in the UAE and as ‘tools’ of self-discovery. Additionally, phenomenological perspectives engaged in this research, allow for values of cultural nostalgia, emotions, sentiments, embodiment, and sensuous presence in the world to be revealed in the Emirati women’s stories.

Sports as an instrument of nationalism and patriotism: a systematic literature review on the role of sports in shaping national identity in various countries

This study investigates how nationalism and patriotism are reflected in sports across various countries through a systematic literature review (SLR). Sports are often used as a tool to disseminate nationalistic and patriotic values, shape national identity, and strengthen social and cultural bonds. This study identifies and analyzes relevant literature from the Scopus and Web of Science (WoS) databases to provide a summary of current knowledge regarding the relationship between sports and nationalism/patriotism. The findings indicate that sports media plays a crucial role in propagating nationalism through the broadcasting of sports events, creating deep national narratives. Symbolism in sports also plays a role in reinforcing national identity, as seen in traditional sports in Scotland. Additionally, sports are used as a political tool to promote nationalism and political legitimacy, particularly in countries like China and South Korea, where sports heroes and naturalized players become symbols of nationalism and patriotism. The study also reveals that media shapes public perception of nationalism and patriotism through narratives that highlight athletes' achievements as a form of national sacrifice. Various theories and analytical approaches, including critical discourse analysis and necropolitical theory, are employed to understand the complex dynamics between sports and nationalism. In conclusion, sports have a multifaceted role in shaping social and cultural dynamics, as well as national identity in various countries. This research provides valuable insights for academics, policymakers, and sports practitioners in leveraging the potential of sports to promote nationalism, patriotism, and social cohesion at both national and international levels. By understanding this role, we can create a more cohesive and united society amidst increasingly complex global challenges.

Improvement of public management mechanisms in the direction of countering hybrid threats to national security

The article represents an attempt of conceptual comprehension of the phenomenon of hybrid threats, which, although inextricably linked with hybrid warfare, still may not include armed conflict even with participation of only irregular combatants. Rather, hybrid threats are aimed at undermining adversary’ infrastructure or gaining much control over it, and sow internal societal tension. Geopolitical components, drivers and factors of hybrid threats are analyzed. Based on analysis of literature sources and practical cases, it is concluded that anticipatory approach is the only way of effective combatting hybrid threats, but implementation of this approach could be backed by a collective change in mentality and a stronger national narrative, while the initiative should be suggested by public administration. There is a need for fresh thinking while expanding the traditional enemy-centric threat assessment and response.

Anokha emerging: The Asian Underground, new ethnicities, and diversity conservatism

This article tracks the relationship between Britain’s ‘Asian Underground’ music scene and reconfigurations of Britishness in the mid- to late-1990s, through to the more contemporary tightening of border regimes and draconian policies around immigration in the United Kingdom. It examines the role that a small, British-Asian weekly London club night, Anokha, played in the precipitation of an ‘emergent structure of feeling’ that would ultimately shift national conversations about what Britishness signified at the turn of the last millennium. The article places British-Asian club and music aesthetics in a broader terrain of avant-garde cultural production and representational politics that helped to incorporate Britain’s second generation of South Asians inside the national narrative and polity. The article goes on to speculate on the role this proliferation has played in facilitating forms of political closure with respect to migration, race and bordering that have emerged from a generation of conservative British South Asian (and second-generation immigrant) politicians enabled by these forms of incorporation.

‘Putting on the Green Jersey’: Irish artists as critical insiders and co-authors of an authentic nation brand

ABSTRACT There is a remarkable confidence in Irish culture right now. In the decade to 2024, Ireland successfully emerged from a devastating recession while overseeing significant investment by the State in the arts. A new generation of artists are shaping Irish identity, forged in the heat of a rapidly growing multicultural population, to construct a new national narrative of Ireland. This paper examines the instrumentalisation of artists in Ireland’s nation brand. Based on interviews with renowned Irish artists, the author applies an autoethnographic approach to capture specific insights from these elite expert informants. The study establishes that artists are complicit in their use of the arts as a tool of soft power. It confirms their unique role in building a nation’s reputation, and engaging international publics with the multiplicity of narratives, within an evolving Irish identity. It calls for a conceptual repositioning of artists as critical co-authors in effective nation branding.

Iconic architecture as vessel for political and cultural expression-Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall changing with Singapore cultural icon

ABSTRACT Architecture embodies symbolic meanings evolving across shifting socio-political landscapes. This paper investigates the multivalent transformations of Singapore’s iconic colonial landmark – the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall (VTCH). Tracing VTCH’s metamorphosing roles, functions, and identities through historical ruptures like British rule, Japanese occupation, decolonization, and nation-building, it illuminates how the complex underwent profound changes. The analysis underscores how regimes continually reimagined this architectural palimpsest to forge national narratives, consolidate collective memories, and materialize power relations. VTCH’s transition from colonial edifice to a symbolically imbued site mirrors the intricate interplay between built environments and Singapore’s spatial politics. Once symbols of colonial dominance, the buildings later embodied sovereign nationhood and nostalgic roots. Notably, VTCH recently assumed new roles driving cultural tourism and economic growth. Through a diachronic interrogation of this singular icon, the paper elucidates broader dialectics between decolonization, nation-building, and the semiotics of heritage in (re)constructing collective identities. It offers insights into how societies redefine spatial legacies to serve evolving ideological imperatives and identity discourses. Integrating the micro-architectural and macro-national enriches understandings of the mutually constitutive relationships between the built environment, political authority and national consciousness.

When the Pretending Stopped: Queer World-Making in New Orleans Press Coverage of the AIDS Crisis, 1985–1991

ABSTRACT This research explores the press coverage of the AIDS epidemic in New Orleans from 1985 to 1991, a period marked by transformative political and social shifts within the gay and lesbian community. After a period of unprecedented visibility in the late 1970s, the gay and lesbian people of New Orleans had a new enemy to contend with in the early 1980s—the AIDS virus. This study investigates two newspapers’ responses and the evolution of narratives and perspectives presented by each. While the New Orleans daily newspaper the Times-Picayune initially echoed national narratives, decentering gay and lesbian individuals from the AIDS story, the New Orleans gay and lesbian newspaper Impact constructed counternarratives, disrupting stereotypes and showcasing individual lives affected by AIDS. By 1986, mainstream coverage began mirroring the gay press, reflecting a shift toward nuanced storytelling. Using issues of Impact, along with coverage from the Times-Picayune and an oral history with reporter John Pope, this research provides insights into the role of Impact in queer world-making and counternarrative construction in New Orleans during this period.

Shahids and martyrs: Conflicting national narratives and places of memory in Kosovo

Kosovo Field (Kosovo Polje), the core region of the newly independent Kosovo, experienced several key historical events, each of which left important memories in the space. As political control over territory changed, different memories connected to the area became stronger, while others were pushed into the background. The first battle of Kosovo (1389) and the death of their ruler Lazar, is a key event in Serbian history, identified through spectacular landmarks in the region. Connected to this event, Turkish monuments also exist, commemorating the death of the martyr Sultan Murad I. Following independence, memorials of Albanian fighters started mushrooming as a core element of Kosovar identity building, with the martyrdom of the “legendary commander” Adem Jashari being central to this emblematic memory project. All three nations have an “official” martyr connected to the space, around which different nation-building narratives have been constructed. As the struggle over the control and influence of the region continues, so does the competition of different memories and memorials. Territorialisation and de-territorialisation of memories are ongoing projects in the country by the three nations, linked to competing nation-buildings and political power struggles.

THE NATIONAL BUILDING POLICY IN KAZAKHSTAN: CIVIC OR ETHNOSOCIAL IDENTITY?

This study demonstrates how Kazakhstan, once entangled in the complex interaction between tradition and the challenges of modernity, is now actively shaping its national identity. Against the backdrop of the issues surrounding identity politics, nationalism, and post-Soviet transitional processes, this article sheds light on Kazakhstan's decisive steps in creating and exporting a unique national narrative in the realm of state-building. This narrative goes beyond simple adaptation of external models and reflects the country's growing academic and intellectual contribution to the global discourse on national identity formation. The article examines the synthesis of governmental efforts, public knowledge, and practical ideology that underpins the formation of national policy. Special attention is given to the fact that in the post-socialist space, Kazakhstan does not merely adhere to a policy of “de-Sovietization” but also redefines its policy as an expression of sovereign identity and national leadership. The study focuses primarily on the process of «Kazakhization» - a significant paradigm in the post-Soviet context. Unlike other post-Soviet narratives, which tend to criticize or deny history or use it merely as a political tool, the Kazakh approach is aimed at strengthening the multifaceted Kazakhstani identity. In this process, Kazakhstan balances between collective civic identity (Kazakhstani) and ethnonational Kazakh identity (Kazakh), reflecting a conscious departure from the rejection or opposition to the past. Instead, the country seeks to integrate and enhance its unique national essence.

Unearthing Identity: the Role of Archaeology in Shaping English National Identity and Heritage Interpretation

ABSTRACT This study examines the significant impact of archaeology on English national identity and heritage interpretation, focusing on key sites like Stonehenge, Sutton Hoo, and Hadrian’s Wall. Using a multidisciplinary approach, we analyze how archaeological discoveries shape national narratives, emphasizing continuity, rootedness, and cultural uniqueness. Through qualitative methods, including interviews and focus groups, we find that public perceptions of these sites highlight themes of engagement, inclusivity, and the need for more comprehensive interpretations. Our results reveal that archaeological interpretations evolve with societal values and political agendas, often reinforcing or challenging notions of national identity. This study underscores the dynamic relationship between archaeology, nationalism, and cultural memory, advocating for a more inclusive and nuanced approach to heritage management and public engagement.

Becoming Austrian, Becoming European? Supranationalism in the Habsburg South in an Age of Emerging Nationalisms: The Comparative Relevance of Trieste

Between 1848 and 1867, at a time that is often considered to be central to Italian, German, and Slavic nation building, the Habsburg port city of Trieste witnessed a significant immigration from throughout Europe and the eastern Mediterranean. While the historiography of the city has focused on the Triestine entrepreneurial class, understandably described as cosmopolitan, little research has been conducted on the rest of the urban population, too often seen as polarized along distinct national affiliations. This article argues that such national allegiances are anachronistic and that ‘vulgar cosmopolitanism’, national indifference, dynastic patriotism, and urban and regional allegiances better define the lived experiences of the majority of the population. Archival material, the applications for Austrian naturalization that thousands of foreigners submitted in the period studied here, shows the intense inter-ethnic engagement of those people who did not belong to the cosmopolitan trading community, who often proved to be insensitive to nationalist agitation and unaware of the existence of ‘nations’. This study of Habsburg Trieste at the time of nation building in Central and Southern Europe provides further elements that refute standard national narratives and classic interpretations of the development of nationalism. It also offers comparative evidence for global cities that have been integrated into mono-national states or have managed to avoid such integrational efforts.

Figurative Narratives in Political Blogging: Linguocognitive Perspective

Introduction. Recent years have seen a significant shift towards the pervasive use of figurative narratives in mediated political communication. Narrative practices, previously analyzed exclusively within the framework of literary theory, have become a kind of «language games» of modern politicians in their communication with potential voters and opponents, debates and intricate negotiation processes. The article analyzes figurative narratives of the English- and German-speaking political blogs as a powerful linguistic-cognitive tool for mediated political communication. The purpose of the paper is deep semantic analysis of figurative narratives of political blogs, which, as the authors claim, is a promising direction of research due to the narrative nature of human reasoning. The paper argues that the skillful use of figurative narrative practices based on archetypical plots and cultural references makes it possible to manipulate the consciousness of the electorate to achieve political goals.Methodology and sources. Methodologically, the study is based on the cognitive-discursive approach to narrative analysis and the basic principles of the neural theory of language and metaphor.Results and discussion. Pointing to the manipulative effect of metaphorical framing in narrative, the authors attempt to present a holistic view of narrative as a tool for the formation of political views. The study is based on the premise that narrative employs the rich structure of human representations of events and actions, and the type of metaphor promoted in the narrative affects human understanding of events and the adoption of certain positions on an important public issue by readers of political blogs. The set of metaphors, politicians use, forms a special type of cultural narrative, which the authors interpret as an extended metaphorical narrative.Conclusion. Summarizing the effects of using metaphorically framed narratives in politics, the authors conclude that the narrative communication strategy in political blogging is a targeted impact on a communication partner by referring to various narrative plots; the modification or transformation of the potential and diversity of political narratives, as well as their effectiveness, speaks in favor of their use in domestic and foreign policy communication to contribute to a symmetrical communication space aimed at successful cooperation rather than confrontation.

Sports Narratives and Historical Nationalism: Re-Visiting the Context and Use of Field Hockey in Chak De! India

Indian cinema is known for its dramatic narratives that celebrate emotionally elevated visual spectacles through which people from different sociocultural backgrounds come across popular domains of cultural practices, social norms and historical realities that unify them. Field hockey belongs to the popular realm of sports in India which is part of the country’s national identity. India’s participation and success in field hockey at the Olympic Games make it one of the country’s most successful international sports. Indian film narratives about field hockey help to create public discourse about how the sport has historically played a role in shaping national pride and identity in India. Hockey evokes nationalism by symbolizing historical achievements, unity, and cultural identity, inspiring pride and patriotism through the portrayal of heroes, national symbols, and emotional narratives in media and public discourse. The film Chak De! India portrays Indian hockey as a patriotic unifying national narrative and as an empowering discourse that can upend traditional gender stereotypes. It delineates that hockey not only acts as a sports game for entertainment but is an indicator of nationalistic significance and cultural identity that elevates the emotional realm of Indians through the notion of patriotism.