scholarly journals Cultural memory in Lithuanian periodical press during World War II

2020 ◽  
Vol 45 ◽  
pp. 95-114
Author(s):  
Titas Krutulys
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Cultural Memory ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Periodical Press ◽  
World War ◽  
Soviet Occupation ◽  
History Of ◽  
Historical Periods

During World War II Lithuania was ruled by three completely different political regimes. In the first year Lithuania was authoritarian state ruled by group of nationalists, in 1940 Lithuania was occupied by Soviet Union and in 1941 State was occupied by Nazi Germany. All these political powers was undemocratic and propagated their ideologies. One of the most important aspect of every ideology is to suggest new concept of time. This change of perception of time could be seen in the change of cultural memory. Article try to analyze this change using the most popular Lithuanian periodical press of the period. This research analyzed main historical periods and the most popular themes represented in the main newspapers. Using theories of Anthony D. Smith and Raoul Girardet research showed what historical periods was seen positively and what negatively, what was main historical heroes and enemies; also how foreign history was represented in the periodical press. The quantitative content analysis showed that while representations of history in the so called independent Lithuania and in Lithuania occupied by Nazis was quite similar, historical representations during first Soviet occupation was unique. Qualitative content analysis showed that there was three very different paradigms of cultural memories, represented in periodical press. Lithuanian nationalist mostly tried to promote Lithuanian medieval times and especially Lithuanian dukes and historical capital Vilnius, also they tried to justify their politics creating myth of great welfare during their rule. They praised Soviet history, criticized Poland and poles, but wrote about most of the countries quite neutral. During Soviet occupation all Lithuanian history was harshly criticized and showed as negative times, this regime promoted only few Lithuanian heroes who died young or was known for their left wing politics. Main historical past represented in the newspapers was history of Soviet Union, other countries was ignored. Main enemies of Soviets was Lithuanian gentry, and Lithuanian rulers of the past. During Nazi occupation there was more Lithuanian national history than German history, but the main appreciable historical periods was Lithuanian prehistory and the 19th Century. Regime promoted history of Lithuanian culture and language, but tried to ignore Lithuanian state. Foreign history was mostly binary – propaganda criticized Soviet Union as well as Tsarist Russia, USA and United Kingdom, but appreciated history of Italy, Japan, Finland, Turkey, Spain etc. Main historical enemies were of course Bolsheviks and Jews.

Eastern Europe in the Global History of Decolonization

2018 ◽  
pp. 350-372 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Mark ◽  
Quinn Slobodian
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
World War I ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
World War ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
New States ◽  
History Of ◽  
European Colonialism ◽  
The Cold War

This chapter places Eastern Europe into a broader history of decolonization. It shows how the region’s own experience of the end of Empire after the World War I led its new states to consider their relationships with both European colonialism and those were struggling for their future liberation outside their continent. Following World War II, as Communist regimes took power in Eastern Europe, and overseas European Empires dissolved in Africa and Asia, newly powerful relationships developed. Analogies between the end of empire in Eastern Europe and the Global South, though sometimes tortured and riddled with their own blind spots, were nonetheless potent rhetorical idioms, enabling imagined solidarities and facilitating material connections in the era of the Cold War and non-alignment. After the demise of the so-called “evil empire” of the Soviet Union, analogies between the postcolonial and the postcommunist condition allowed for further novel equivalencies between these regions to develop.

Bibliographic Article: Baltic Émigré Publishing and Scholarship in the Western World

1988 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-241
Author(s):  
David Crowe
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Western World ◽  
Ethnic Communities ◽  
World War ◽  
The West ◽  
Academic Field ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
History Of ◽  
To Come

The Soviet absorption of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania during World War II caused hundreds of thousands of Baltic immigrants to come to the West, where they established strong, viable ethnic communities, often in league with groups that had left the region earlier. At first, Baltic publishing and publications centered almost exclusively on nationalistic themes that decried the loss of Baltic independence and attacked the Soviet Union for its role in this matter. In time, however, serious scholarship began to replace some of the passionate outpourings, and a strong, academic field of Baltic scholarship emerged in the West that dealt with all aspects of Baltic history, politics, culture, language, and other matters, regardless of its political or nationalistic implications. Over the past sixteen years, these efforts have produced a new body of Baltic publishing that has revived a strong interest in Baltic studies and has insured that regardless of the continued Soviet-domination of the region, the study of the culture and history of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania will remain a set fixture in Western scholarship on Eastern Europe.

scholarly journals Quo vadis Rorschach-teszt? A Rorschach-próba múltja, jelene, krízisei, megújulása és jövője

2020 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 13-32
Author(s):  
Császár-Nagy Noémi
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Phase 1 ◽  
The United States ◽  
Test Phase ◽  
World War ◽  
Death Phase ◽  
History Of ◽  
Quo Vadis ◽  
Historical Trajectory ◽  
Historical Periods

Célkitűzés: A tanulmány a Rorschach projektív személyiségvizsgáló eljárás történeti nyomvonalán haladva a teszt fejlődésének, kríziseinek és megújulásának fázisait teszi követhetővé.Módszertan: Alapvető forrásmunkák, monográfiák, történeti és szakirodalmi tanulmányokon alapuló gyűjtés adatainak rendezése, történeti és fejlődési korszakokra tagolása.Eredmények: A teszt szakmatörténeti fejlődési útját hat szakaszra tagolva ismertetjük az ötlettől a megvalósulásig: történések Hermann Rorschach haláláig (1. szakasz); a teszt sorsa a Rorschach halála utáni évtizedben (1923-1936) (2. szakasz); a teszt súlypontjának átkerülése az USA-ba (3. szakasz); a második világháborútól a hetvenes évekig terjedő időszak (1941-1970), a teszt fénykora és alkonya (4. szakasz); a teszt újjászületése, a szintézisteremtő John Exner munkássága (5. szakasz), valamint: támadások tüzében és az új R-PAS teszt születése (6. szakasz).Következtetések: A fejlődési út a teszt keletkezésétől kezdve mindmáig konfliktushordozó. A kauzális gondolkodás fegyelme, a tesztológia pszichometrikus követelményei, valamint az életszerű közelítés, a viselkedés átfogó és intuitív értelmezési módja közt feszülő, megújuló ellentéteket tárja fel. A konfliktus kezelésének történeti jellegzetessége a hegeli „megszüntetve megőrzés" (Aufheben), a régibe ágyazódó, megújuló módszertanok születése. Ezt tükrözi a Rorschach-teszt története is.Objective: This study makes the phases of the test's development, crises and renewal traceable by means of the historical trajectory of the Rorschach Projective Personality Examination Procedure.Methodology: An analysis of data collected from essential sources, including monographs as well as historical and literary studies, broken down into the historical periods of the test's development.Results: The historical trajectory of the test is described in six phases: From the idea to its realisation - the events prior to Hermann Rorschach's death (Phase 1); The fate of the test in the decade after Rorschach's death (1923-36) (Phase 2); The shift in focus to the United States (Phase 3); The period from World War II to the 1970s (1941-1970), The golden age and decline of the test (Phase 4); The rebirth of the test and the work of the synthesiser John Exner (Phase 5); and The test under attack and the birth of the new R-PAS test (Phase 6).Conclusions: The test's path of development, from its genesis up to the present day, has been marked by conflict. This reveals the tense and on-going contradictions between the discipline of causal thinking, the psychometric requirements of testing and a realistic, comprehensive and intuitive approach to interpreting behaviour. A historical feature of conflict management in Hegelian terms is 'sublation ' (Aufheben), or the renewal of methodologies that are embedded in the past. This is also reflected in the history of the Rorschach test.

The Importance of Reindeer in Northern Finland during World War II (1939–45) and the Post-War Reconstruction

ARCTIC ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 71 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Minna T. Turunen ◽  
Sirpa Rasmus ◽  
Asta Kietäväinen
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
Reindeer Herding ◽  
World War ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Food Transport ◽  
Cattle Farming ◽  
Post War

We studied the consequences of World War II (WWII, 1939–45) for reindeer herding in northern Finland, evaluated the significance of the livelihood for the population during and after the war, and identified the factors that made successful reconstruction of the livelihood possible. The study is based on qualitative content analysis of articles published in the professional journal Poromies (‘Reindeer Herder’) during the period 1931–67. Reindeer were an important source of food, transport, clothing, footwear, and skins for soldiers during the war. Approximately 220 000 reindeer were slaughtered to provide food, averting the compulsory slaughter of 88 000 cows. Herders’ skills were highly valued during the war. The herds and herders figured in the reconstruction of northern Finland and contributed to the war reparations owed the Soviet Union. During the period 1939–45 the number of reindeer fell dramatically, and the cession of Finnish territories to the Soviet Union and destruction of fences made herding difficult. In addition, the area of pastureland available to reindeer decreased. The combined effects of military operations, a labour shortage, an increased number of predators, and difficult weather and snow conditions led to losses of reindeer. The recovery of the livelihood to its pre-war level took 10 years. We argue that in addition to improved post-war pasture conditions—a result of decreased reindeer densities and favourable weather—the rapid recovery of reindeer herding can be attributed to the high motivation, diligence, and experiential knowledge of herders and the herding administration gained in rebuilding the livelihood after WWI (1914–18). Both groups understood that in northern Finland it would be economically wiser to invest in reindeer husbandry rather than cattle farming since reindeer are better adapted than cattle to the harsh climate and to forage grown in low-productive soils. Reindeer herding was based on natural pastures and labour, whereas cattle farming relied on crop cultivation, as well as expensive buildings, machinery, and fertilizers.

Towards a Bipolar World. Book Review of ‘The Second World War and the Transformation of International Relations: From Multipolarity to a Bipolar World’ edited by L.S. Belousov and A.S. Manykin

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 228-234
Author(s):  
V. I. Batyuk
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
International Relations ◽  
The United States ◽  
Detailed Examination ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Military Operations ◽  
World War ◽  
History Of ◽  
High Level

In 2020 the whole world commemorated the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II — the most horrifi c war in the human history. However, the celebration of the victory over fascism was overshadowed by the growing tension among the leading actors of contemporary international relations. In this context, a high level of responsibility falls on the academic community to rebuff politically motivated attempts to rewrite history and revise the outcomes of this war. The book under review could make an important contribution to that end. The book provides a comprehensive and balanced analysis of the history of World War II. The reviewer emphasizes that rather than providing a detailed examination of military operations the authors focused on their impact on the development of the international relations system. In particular, the book provides a detailed picture of the complex interactions within the strategic triangle — the Soviet Union, the United States, and Great Britain — both during the war and in the years after the war. As a result, the book under review not only provides an opportunity to better understand the key trends in relationships between the Great Powers during the war, but also sheds new light on the origins of the bipolar system and the beginning of the Cold War. The reviewer concludes that, despite sometimes excessively Eurocentric approach of the authors, this book is a seminal work on the history of World War II and a major event for the Russian academic community. As such, this book can be recommended to both professional historians and a wider audience.

The Anti-Hitler Coalition: From Enmity to Military Alliance — A Formula for Success

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 7-44
Author(s):  
A. Yu. Borisov
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
World Order ◽  
The United States ◽  
Nazi Germany ◽  
World War ◽  
Military Alliance ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Red Army ◽  
History Of

It is unfortunate to note again today that World War II did not end, it continues in the form of the war of memory. Politicians and scholars who stand as ideological successors of collaborators are trying to rewrite the history of those tragic days, to downplay the role of the Soviet Union in the victory over fascism. They try to revive certain political myths, which have been debunked long ago, that the Soviet Union and the Nazi Germany bear equal responsibility for the outbreak of World War II, that the Red Army did not liberate Eastern Europe but ‘occupied’ it. In order to combat these attempts it is necessary to examine once again a turbulent history of the inter-war period and, particularly, the reasons why all attempts to form a united antifascist front had failed in the 1930s, but eventually led to the formation of the anti-Hitler coalition.The paper focuses on a complex set of political considerations, including cooperation and confrontation, mutual suspicions and a fervent desire to find an ally in the face of growing international tensions, which all together determined the dynamics of relations within a strategic triangle of the Soviet Union — the United States — Great Britain in the late 1930s and early 1940s. The paper shows how all attempts to establish a collective security system during the prewar period had shattered faced with the policy of appeasement, which allowed the Nazi Germany to occupy much of Europe. Only the Soviet Union’s entry into the war changed the course of the conflict and made a decisive contribution to the victory over fascist aggressors. The author emphasizes that at such crucial moment of history I.V. Stalin, F.D. Roosevelt and W. Churchill raised to that challenge, demonstrating realism, common sense and willingness to cooperate. Although within the anti-Hitler coalition there was a number of pending issues, which triggered tensions between the Allies, their leaders managed to move beyond old grievances, ideological differences and short-term political interests, to realize that they have a common strategic goal in the struggle against Nazism. According to the author, this is the foundation for success of the anti-Hitler coalition and, at the same time, the key lesson for contemporary politicians. The very emergence of the anti-Hitler coalition represented a watershed in the history of the 20th century, which has determined a way forward for the whole humanity and laid the foundations for the world order for the next fifty years.

scholarly journals Editor's Introduction

2013 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. v-viii
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Census Data ◽  
Migration Background ◽  
Substantial Variation ◽  
World War ◽  
Modern Germany ◽  
German Citizenship ◽  
Ethnic Germans ◽  
History Of

Despite decades of official denial, modern Germany has always been acountry of immigration. From Poles migrating to the Ruhr in the late nineteenthcentury, to German refugees and expellees after World War II, toItalians and Greeks in the 1950s, to ethnic Germans from the formerSoviet Union and refugees from Bosnia in the 1990s, the country has along history of attracting newcomers. In fact, according to the recentlyreleased 2011 census data, approximately 19 percent of the Federal Republic’spopulation of around 80 million has a “migration background.”1 Ofcourse, this national average masks substantial variation at the state or citylevel—places like Hamburg, Berlin and Baden-Württemberg have shares ofresidents with such a background of a quarter or more, whereas the easternLänder have proportions under 5 percent. This sizeable population isalso very different than a generation ago—increasingly rooted and diverse:60 percent of this group has German citizenship and about half of this subgroupwas born in Germany. Regarding countries of origin or ancestry,17.9 percent have origins in Turkey, 13.1 percent in Poland, and about 8.7percent in both Russia and Kazakhstan.

Sweden, the United States, and Raoul Wallenberg's Mission to Hungary in 1944

2012 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 97-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Matz
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Other ◽  
World War ◽  
Soviet Occupation ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
The Face ◽  
The U.S

This article provides an in-depth examination of the U.S. government's role in the case of Raoul Wallenberg, the courageous Swedish envoy who died mysteriously in the Soviet Union after being arrested by Soviet occupation forces at the end of World War II for unknown reasons. The article recounts how U.S. officials, particularly the diplomat Herschel V. Johnson, tried to alleviate the plight of Hungarian Jews after German forces occupied Hungary in 1944. A key part of this policy was their effort to work with Sweden in enlisting Wallenberg's help. The U.S.-Swedish relationship was never particularly close, and the mistrust that officials in each country felt toward the other side impeded any coordinated action. The article discusses the bureaucratic impediments on the U.S. side and highlights some of the obstacles that Johnson strove to overcome. The article builds on the report produced by the Eliasson Commission documenting the Swedish government's handling of the Wallenberg case. Although the Swedish authorities bore by far the greatest amount of blame for doing nothing in the face of Soviet stonewalling, Matz argues that U.S. officials also made significant misjudgments that may have exacerbated the situation.

The treasure of the Berlin State museums and its allied capture: remarks and questions

1998 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 308-341
Author(s):  
K Goldmann
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Former Soviet Union ◽  
The United States ◽  
Documentary Evidence ◽  
World War ◽  
Art Objects ◽  
Art Works ◽  
German Nation ◽  
History Of

Following the disclosure of archives in the former Soviet Union detailing art works taken from Germany at the end of World War II, it is now possible to reconstruct more accurately a history of those objects removed from Germany but never returned. Inconsistencies in the documentary evidence concerning both the location of objects sent West from Berlin and other repositories (particularly in the last few months of the war) and the number of objects returned to Germany indicate that the United States may have been involved in an unofficial policy of claiming as war booty art treasures form the conquered German nation. This article attempts to detail some of those inconsistencies by comparing what is known of the inventories of German museums before the war, the movements of art objects and repositories used during the war, and the inventories of the German museums today, in order to reconstruct some of this missing pact.

scholarly journals The meanings of scientific progress in the history of International Relations – selected cases

Politeja ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (6(75)) ◽  
pp. 29-50
Author(s):  
Mateusz Filary
Keyword(s):  
World War Ii ◽  
International Relations ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Scientific Progress ◽  
History Of Ideas ◽  
World War ◽  
Power Politics ◽  
Great Debate ◽  
History Of ◽  
Research Questions

This article aims at reconstructing and interpreting the meanings of scientific progress present in selected important works within the discipline of International Relations (IR). This research objective stems from the gap in the literature concerning scientific progress in IR, as it is mostly concerned with the evaluation of the progressiveness of particular approaches, paradigms within the discipline. The reconstruction of meanings given by particular IR scholars to scientific progress is conducted only as far as its instrumental for the critique of their approaches and making room for the approaches of the critics. My objective is different – using a method inspired by the history of ideas and the research technique of qualitative content analysis, I will attempt to answer the following research questions: Q1 – How is the category of scientific progress of IR understood by particular scholars? Q2 – What are the contexts of its usage? Q3 – How can we interpret the rationale behind the employment of particular meanings in particular contexts? Q4 – How, on the basis of all cases, can we depict the flow of ideas of scientific progress through the history of IR? The cases selected span the development of IR from World War II to the early 2000s: Edward Carr’s The Twenty Years’ Crisis; Morton Kaplan’s texts from the early phase of the second great debate; John Vasquez’s The Power of Power Politics; and Miriam and Colin Elman’s Progress in International Relations Theory. On the basis of these cases I will argue that the notion of scientific progress in IR is an essentially contested concept within the discipline. Despite certain similarities in the meaning of the term among the cases – a cumulative notion of scientific progress – all of them are used in a way that is intended to legitimize the approach of a particular author as ‘properly scientific’. Another conclusion drawn is that although differing in kind, all of the cases consider important historical events that do not shape the meanings of progress themselves, but instead create a window of opportunity for particular meanings, as their context.

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