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The politicization of the language issue in Ukraine: the discursive construction of the language, nationalism, and identity in Ukrainian media.
Hu, Qianrui ; Šír, Jan (advisor) ; Wilson, Andrew (referee) ; Kolenovská, Daniela (referee)
Despite already thirty years after gaining independence, Ukraine is still having difficulties forming an integral and united national identity. The language issue in Ukraine is a vivid example of the problem Ukraine is confronting. Numerous efforts have been made with the aim to strengthen the role of the Ukrainian language, but the presence of the Russian language in Ukraine is still strong. Furthermore, the battle between these two languages often provokes huge public debates, and the debates do not revolve around the language use itself, but usually associate it with the wider debate of the Ukrainian common memory. Although much research has been devoted to analysing the narratives of relevant language laws, the discourses of Ukrainian politicians, or public opinions of the language issue and their links with people's political orientation, this thesis will focus on the discourses of media, an equally important site which represents and reproduces everyday nationalism. By adopting the methodology of critical discourse analysis, this work aims to uncover what are the common themes behind the everyday debate on the language issue in Ukrainian media and what are the typical mechanisms and strategies in the language use of media discourses to facilitate propagating their language ideologies. After a...
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How a Realist-Constructivist Theory Can Contribute to Understanding the 2014 Ukraine Crisis
Rigby, Sophia ; Šír, Jan (advisor) ; Wilson, Andrew (referee) ; Svoboda, Karel (referee)
How a Realist-Constructivist Theory Can Contribute to Understanding the 2014 Ukraine Crisis Abstract Realism has been the predominant paradigm for analysing Russian foreign policy in recent times, however, it can sometimes appear lacking in convincing power. Constructivism offers some explanation for the motivation behind policy, however, again appears lacking in convincing power alone. Realist-constructivsm has been suggested to bridge the gap, as it were, between traditional notions of power, and cultural influences. The main argument for realist-constructivism is that some of the basic principles of realism must have a constructivist base, for example, in order to define the 'us' and 'them' in international politics and to determine with whom one is competing for power and influence, there first must be an understanding of how one defines the 'us'. This analysis examines the realistconstructivist theory as put forward by Barkin (2004; 2010), analyses its advantages and disadvantages, and seeks to view the Ukraine crisis of 2014 through a realist-constructivist lens, hoping to contribute something to the still young and developing discussion around a realist- constructivist theory. Keywords Realist-constructivist theory; NATO; national identity; Ukraine; Crimea; the EU; 2014; annexation
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Polish foreign policy towards Ukraine between the Orange Revolution and the Euromaidan: political rhetoric
Zakrzewska, Marta ; Vykoukal, Jiří (advisor) ; Šmidrkal, Václav (referee) ; Wilson, Andrew (referee)
The following dissertation looked at the problem of Polish foreign policy towards Ukraine between the Orange Revolution and the Euromaidan crisis, as it was expressed in the political rhetoric. Importantly the work drew on the tradition of the Polish émigré journal Kultura and the rich historical background of the Polish-Ukrainian relations. This was done in order to prove the hypothesis that although the recent strategy towards Ukraine borrows from the historical concepts, it does so incoherently. In essence, Polish authorities today prefer to design their own strategy, while references to the Kultura review serve as a bridge to keep a consistent image about Polish Eastern Policy. What has been also discussed was the division between the so-called romantic and pragmatic approach towards Polish Eastern Policy. The dissertation demonstrates that in general the labels are used rather mechanically. As such, it is often difficult to draw the line between romantics and pragmatics among Polish political class. The research was conducted with the use of qualitative content analysis methodology and supported by the constructivist theory. Its results are presented in a form of a set of categories that correspond to the main themes, which have been observed throughout the collected textual material. A...
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