UKRAINIAN-POLISH INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION IN THE BORDER AREAS (THE END OF THE 20TH – THE BEGINNING OF THE 21ST CENTURY)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24919/2519-058X.23.258987Abstract
Integrative processes of the 21st century resulted in a new configuration of international relations in the eastern borders of the European Union. It was particularly evident in the Ukrainian-Polish border defined by the boundary that was established after the World War II. The purpose of this article is scientific interpretation of active forms of the Ukrainian-Polish intercultural communication, induced by religious, denominational, and commemorative factors, as well as an analysis of a phenomenon of cross-border coexistence amidst the processes of Eurointegration at the end of the 20th – the beginning of the 21st century. The research methodology covers a wide spectrum of interdisciplinary scientific approaches developed by ethnology and cultural anthropology. Scientific apprehension of the Ukrainian-Polish relations in the categories Ours – Alien – Other based on the typology of memory studies – individual-communicative-cultural – made it possible to trace the nature of self-identification of residents in the Ukrainian-Polish border areas and measure the influence of religious and memorial factors on the Ukrainian-Polish intercultural borderline communication on the verge of centuries in the most effective way. The scientific novelty of this article consists in spotting typical mechanisms of intercultural and state-to-state Ukrainian-Polish interaction, definition of the role of historical stereotypes as consolidative power for the preservation (or failure to do it) of common historical heritage and building the Ukrainian-Polish relations in accordance with the traditions of European value landmarks. The Conclusions. The present-day Ukrainian-Polish border is a reflection of a socio-cultural phenomenon based on shared historical experience, collective memory, and negative/positive stereotypes. The conflict potential of the Ukrainian and Polish social relations took the form of disputes regarding the Greek-Catholic Cathedral in Przemyśl and the Cemetery of the Defenders of Lviv resulted from the Soviet suppression of historical memory, cultivation of negative stereotypes, and immaturity of elites. The positive aspect manifested through institutional activities aimed at preservation of cultural heritage by the means of Ukrainian and Polish publishing, exhibition and restoration projects, as well as intercultural discourse.
Key words: the Ukrainians, the Poles, border areas, ours–alien–other, Przemyśl, Lviv, cultural heritage, historical memory.
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