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Kategorie: Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval

This TRAFO Blog series discusses issues and concerns of East European studies in times of change and upheaval – in the context of Russia’s ongoing war against Ukraine, and beyond. The series is conceived in relation to the research program Prisma Ukraïna, at the Forum Transregionale Studien, initiated by Andrii Portnov with the idea to investigate historical and contemporary European questions through the prism of Ukraine; the research project European Times: A Transregional Perspectives on the Societies of Central and Eastern Europe (EUTIM), that addresses narratives of time and space at the edges of Europe; and the Viadrina Center of Polish and Ukrainian Studies (VCPU) that focuses on interdisciplinary research on Polish and Ukrainian history and the present day. Contributions to this blog series can touch upon the concepts of times and location of East, West or Southeast Europe, on the place of the so called east of Europe in World or Global History, in comparative Literature or other disciplinary fields of inquiry, the legacies of chronologies, empires and ideologies, on the uses and misuses of history and identity. We are interested in reassessments of area studies and the humanities and social sciences, in past and current issues of and in the region, like nationalism, pluralism, war, resilience, displacement, destruction and re-construction, questions of language, traveling theory, alternative archives and popular histories. We invite looking into more neglected topics as well, such as new approaches to the pluralist past and present of Eastern Europe, or comparative perspectives to other regions of the world. Contributions can address questions on the state and future of East European studies, of the Humanities and Social Sciences in Ukraine, Poland, Slovakia, Bulgaria or Hungary. What is the potential of decolonization and what might decoloniality in different contexts mean? Which themes are important and for whom? What may historical reconciliation look like? Texts in this series need not connect to only Ukraine but can be situated in Eastern Europe. We also encourage transregional approaches through comparative perspectives, for example, those on former Yugoslavia, the Arab Spring, Latin American revolutions, or other case studies.
The series is edited by Olha Haidamachuk, Judith Sieber, Sophie Schmäing, Martin Lochthofen, and Andrii Portnov.

If you are interested in contributing or have any questions, please contact us at communication@trafo-berlin.de. For more information on general contribution requirements, please visit our Contributions page.

Prisma Ukraïna / Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval

An Angry Ukrainian Syndrome: Stereotypes About War, Peace, and Injustice

By Olena Komar. In this article, the author aims to demonstrate that a set of prejudices exists in Western countries against Ukrainians, which she terms the “Angry Ukrainian Syndrome” (similar to the “North African Syndrome”). This is a set of biases that have emerged through the way Ukrainians communicate about the war and how they meet the stereotypical expectations of Westerners. Furthermore, these prejudices are colonial, stemming from an inability to see Ukrainians as independent people, distinct from Russians.

Prisma Ukraïna / Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval

Синдром злих українців: несправедливість та стереотипи про війну і мир

Олена Комар. У цій статті я демонструю низку упереджень щодо українців у західних країнах, які я називаю «синдромом злих українців» (за аналогією з «північноафриканським синдромом»). Ці упередження виникли через те, як українці розповідають про війну і як їх сприймають у зв’язку зі стереотипними очікуваннями західноєвропейців. Крім того, ці упередження мають колоніальну природу, що випливає з нездатності бачити українців як незалежний народ, відмінний від росіян.

Prisma Ukraïna / Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval

Enduring Through Liminality: Across and Beyond the Borders of Eastern Europe in the Wartime

By Julia Buyskykh. For decades, anthropologists have been studying borders and borderlands, concentrating on marginalised groups (whether minorities, migrants, or refugees), cross-border state relations, border shadow economies, and the multiple identities of populations settling along borders, whose silenced voices often contradict official state narratives of history, identities, and religion. In this article, the author reflects upon her own experience, entangling it with current anthropological scholarship, exploring the tragic semantics of being displaced and misplaced.

Prisma Ukraïna / Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval

In Search of Stability and Purpose: Ukrainian (Displaced) Researchers in Germany

By Lidia Kuzemska. In April 2024, major German foundations organised a networking event for their Ukrainian fellows. Two days of discussions and exchange served not only to give the scholars from different fields space to mingle, but also to brainstorm about how they see their current role and future in academia (be it in Ukraine, in Germany or elsewhere). This text provides an overview of what Ukrainian researchers in Germany currently consider to be the most important challenges and how they perceive their prospects.

Prisma Ukraïna / Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval

Decolonizing Family Metaphors in the Context of the Russian-Ukrainian War and Beyond

By Illia Ilin. The recent history of Ukraine can be metaphorically described as a journey to break away from the abusive “triune Russian people” family and reconnect with the democratic “European peoples” family. This long process of decolonization has been ongoing for over 30 years and signifies the reclamation of Ukrainian territories, history, and identity by the Ukrainian people. This article will explore the family metaphors of (de)colonization of Russia and unified Europe in relation to Ukraine, and the potential for their expansion and decolonization.

Prisma Ukraïna / Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval

Complicity, Past and Present: Portrayals of Involvement in Mass Violence and Terror in Documentary Fiction

By Juliane Prade-Weiss. One of the puzzling questions about Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and other conflicts is why people participate in, support, or condone mass violence when it appears, for observers, so glaringly wrong. Reasons for becoming complicit with violence against civilians vary with individual positions as well as historical and regional contexts. Participation in, aiding and abetting mass violence and the structures of authoritarian, totalitarian or other regimes exerting it are key issues in the social sciences and in history. Yet, literary texts can contribute to understanding complicity, too.

#DossierUkraine / Areas and Disciplines / EUTIM / Prisma Ukraïna / Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval

Rethinking East European Studies in Times of Upheaval: Some Reflections on Ukrainian Studies in Germany (and Not Only)

By Andrii Portnov. Ukrainian history and literature in the German higher education system are the disciplines whose institutional weakness is more than obvious. Ukraine itself, in the eyes of a large part of German (including academic) society, still does not have enough cultural and historical agency and remains ‘in the shadow of Russia’.