Semiotika “treće snage”: MOST i performativna i vizualna dimenzija političkog života u postizbornom razdoblju u Hrvatskoj 2015. godine

The present paper analyzes the media representation of the idea of the “third force” in politics. The research focuses on how the notion is being staged and visualized in order to create the impression of a new and fresh agent in the race for power. The case of MOST, a political coalition which gained importance in the 2015 Croatian parliamentary election, seems particularly important and adequate for the purpose. I do not discuss programs, political aims or visions of the main political parties. Rather, I propose a semiotic analysis of public communication. Attention will be paid to performative aspects of television broadcasts, organization of the space where negotiations were held, visual relations between political actors. The broadcasts, and the broadly taken space of public contact, will be treated as a stage, and actions taking place on such a stage as a political drama, with a screenplay which may be, but is not necessarily, conscious and planned. When seen from this perspective, the focus of interest does not lie on the purposeful layout of seating in a meeting or a public communique, but on unconscious cultural patterns which have a great impact on our decisions, choices, and perceptions. Ultimately, the electoral success of MOST was related not only to its program, but also–or maybe mostly – to its performative policy and its consistent positioning as a new actor in the political field.U ovom se članku analizira medijski prikaz pojma “treće snage” u području politike. Rad se bavi načinom na koji se pojam “treće snage” uprizoruje i vizualizira s ciljem stvaranja dojma o novosti i svježini agensa u utrci za moći. Slučaj Mosta, političke koalicije koja je dobila na važnosti na parlamentarnim izborima u Hrvatskoj 2015. godine, čini se posebno važnim i adekvatnim za navedenu analizu. U radu ne raspravljam o programima, političkim ciljevima ili vizijama glavnih političkih stranaka, nego dajem semiotičku analizu javne komunikacije. Posebno se bavim performativnim aspektima televizijskih emisija, organizacijom prostora gdje su se održavali pregovori i vizualnim odnosima među političkim dionicima. Televizijske emisije i čitav širi prostor javnog kontakta sagledat ću kao pozornicu, a djelovanja na tako shvaćenoj pozornici kao političku predstavu utemeljenu na scenariju koji može biti, ali nije nužno, svjestan i planiran. Iz navedene perspektive najzanimljivijim se ne čine planirani rasporedi prostora na sastanku ili u javnom obraćanju, nego nesvjesni kulturni obrasci koji imaju velik utjecaj na naše odluke, izbore i percepciju. Zaključno tvrdim da izborni uspjeh Mosta nije bio vezan isključivo uz njegov program nego i uz – ili ponajviše uz – njegovu performativnu politiku i konzistentno pozicioniranje kao novog igrača u političkom prostoru

Pierwsza mapa Słowenii

The first map of Slovenia was published only in 1861; it was the work of Peter Kozler, Slovenian lawyer and self-taught cartographer. If we analyze it in context of contemporary cartography, its novelty appears clearly. Kozler’s map was based on the principle of ethnicity, and not on a historical and juridical tradition of the Habsburg lands as it was the usage. The border of Slovenian territory crossed historical provinces. The map is presented in the paper as a visual realization of the principles of United Slovenia (Zedinjena Slovenija), first Slovenian political movement in 1848, which claimed unity and autonomy of the Slovenian nation. The performative and constructivist character of the document is strengthened, as far as it didn’t describe an existing state of matters, but was rather postulating a non-existing yet political entity of Slovenes. Thus, the form and function of the map, on the example of Kozler’s one, seem support a political idea of Slovenian national emancipation.The first map of Slovenia was published only in 1861; it was the work of Peter Kozler, Slovenian lawyer and self-taught cartographer. If we analyze it in context of contemporary cartography, its novelty appears clearly. Kozler’s map was based on the principle of ethnicity, and not on a historical and juridical tradition of the Habsburg lands as it was the usage. The border of Slovenian territory crossed historical provinces. The map is presented in the paper as a visual realization of the principles of United Slovenia (Zedinjena Slovenija), first Slovenian political movement in 1848, which claimed unity and autonomy of the Slovenian nation. The performative and constructivist character of the document is strengthened, as far as it didn’t describe an existing state of matters, but was rather postulating a non-existing yet political entity of Slovenes. Thus, the form and function of the map, on the example of Kozler’s one, seem support a political idea of Slovenian national emancipation

Transcultural Experience and Multiple Biographies as a Research Topic

Transcultural Experience and Multiple Biographies as a Research Topic Transculturality refers to the traditional understanding of culture as self-contained, concentrated around its own center and producing clear borders. “Trans” signifies the act of crossing; it signifies overcoming such borders. It looks at phenomena, people, and notions that are not limited to one communicational environment, but are represented in multiple locations, or contexts. Or rather—they cannot be fully ascribed to one “culture,” because they exhibit, traits of both (or more) cultures. Culture studies often describe, also, people with “trans” life stories; it is not a matter of simple crossing of borders, living a bit in one environment and a bit in another. The point is that their sense of belonging is of a mixed, ambiguous character, and their identity is blurred. It is a question of practices that they draw from two or more sources, creating a peculiar amalgam characteristic of living “in between.” Transculturality, just like multiple biographies, means both partial belonging and dual belonging, which is very well illustrated by the case studies presented in the volume: they have in a way, varied roots, which means they bear unique, hybrid fruit.   Doświadczenie transkulturowe i biografie wielorakie jako temat badawczy Transkulturowość odnosi się do tradycyjnego pojmowania kultury jako samowystarczalnej, skoncentrowanej na sobie i wytwarzającej wyraźne granice. Przyrostek „trans” oznacza akt przekraczania tak wytyczonych granic. Kategoria transkulturowości skłania do patrzenia na zjawiska, biografie i pojęcia jako coś, co nie ogranicza się do jednego środowiska komunikacyjnego, lecz występuje bądź przejawia się w wielu miejscach i kontekstach. Można też powiedzieć, że nie można ich przypisać do jednej „kultury”, ponieważ reprezentują cechy dwóch (lub więcej) wspólnot kulturowych. Studia kulturowe często zajmują się osobami, czyje historie życia mają taki właśnie charakter „trans-graniczny” charakter. Nie chodzi przy tym jedynie o proste przejście granic, życie trochę w jednym, a trochę w drugim środowisku. Istotne jest to, że poczucie przynależności staje się niejasne lub wielorakie. Pojawia się na przykład kwestia praktyk związanych z dwoma lub więcej źródłami wzorców, co tworzy specyficzny amalgamat życia „pomiędzy”. Transkulturowość, podobnie jak biografie wielorakie, oznacza zarówno częściową, jak i zróżnicowaną identyfikację, którą świetnie ilustrują studia przypadków przedstawione w trzecim numerze „Colloquia Humanistica”; można by rzec, iż mają one różnorodne korzenie, przez co rodzą wyjątkowe, hybrydyczne owoce

Tożsamość narodowa w społeczeństwie multietnicznym Macedonii

National Identity in the Multi-Ethnic Society of MacedoniaThe review of the book: Tożsamość narodowa w społeczeństwie multietnicznym Macedonii, ed. by Irena Stawowy-Kawka and Maciej Kawka and published by Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego in Cracow, 2008

Art Patrons and the National Treasure: A Comparative Reading of the Croatian and Slovenian Context of the Institutionalization of Literature in Pre-Illyrism

The question of literary patronage is part of the debate about the place of literature in the national culture and cultural policy. At the root of the argument is the nowadays almost unanimous presumption that literature should have a special status within social practices, and that the literary life as such should be supported by the state through its specialized institutions. Nonetheless, that view has had a relatively short history, going back to the beginning of the 19th century, and is related to important changes in the European civilization. The essay focuses on the moment when the ancient regime of feudal order was falling down, as were the social practices related to it, and the new one was still in the offing. The old-time patronage relying on imposing individuals like Zigmund Zois or Maksimilijan Vrhovac was in decline, leaving an opening for collective patronage and civic involvement based on the principle of common usefulness, and thereafter for national institutions which were to implement cultural policy in the name of the nation. Sources from Croatian and Slovene cultural history analysed in this essay reveal the course of this transformation while principally tackling the crucial question, that of the nationalization of literature and its transformation into the instrument of national politics

Continuity and Discontinuity in the Cultural Landscape of the Capital City: Paris and Skopje

Continuity and Discontinuity in the Cultural Landscape of the Capital City: Paris and SkopjeThe object of my reflections in this article is the question of creating a vision of historical continuity, and thus making significant the narratives about the past, in the space of the city. I treat the city as a cultural landscape par excellence; it is precisely the city that creates the best opportunities of influencing interpretation by means of creating a specific set of symbolic references and of images awakening the play of interpretation. The city is inhabited by many individuals and varied groups, which forces it into negotiations of signification. The research present herein concerns the capital cities. The capital of a nation state is a specific city, normally defined by its very legal status as capital, recognized and regulated by special edict, it is also a symbolic space of particular weight, a place to demonstrate the power of the state and of the nation, to display and consolidate identity, to present one’s image to outsiders and mould a desired self-image for the benefit of the citizens – members of one’s group. Drawing on the example of Paris and Skopje, two cities whose historical contexts are considerably different, I would like to show the specific ways of drawing conclusions adapted to the urban landscape, because despite the obvious differences, both cities allow for the discernment of a historical period in which the city itself served as an important element of the public realm and as symbolic public property. The increased significance of cities in Europe is connected without a doubt to the process of democratization, thus the capitals of France and Macedonia are good examples of the transformation that converted a privatized (feudal) space or a space interpreted along sacred lines (as land belonging to God) into a public space and public property of citizens, and/or the dominant nation.It appears that the most important agent in the capital landscape is the state. It is the bureaucracy of the state, appearing in the role of executor of the national will, deciding on the shape of the image of the city, reinforcing those values that seem to be desirable from the perspective of the represented group. The lack of that factor leads, as in the case of Skopje, to the preservation of the local past and/or to a haphazardly implemented publicly sponsored construction. In both cases discussed above, the map and the landmarks mirror the most important categories of national narrative. The shape of this narrative depends largely upon the central authorities of the nation.Ciągłość i nieciągłość w przestrzeni miasta stołecznego: Paryż i SkopjePrzedmiotem niniejszego artykułu jest zagadnienie tworzenia wizji ciągłości dziejowej, a więc usensowionej narracji o przeszłości, w przestrzeni miasta. Miasto bowiem jawi się jako przestrzeń kulturowa par excellence i ono właśnie stwarza najlepsze możliwości wpływu na interpretację poprzez tworzenie specyficznego układu odniesień symbolicznych i obrazów, pobudzających grę interpretacji. Miasto zamieszkiwane jest przez wiele jednostek i różnorakich grup, co zmusza je do negocjacji znaczeń. Przedmiotem przedstawionych tu badań są stolice. Stolica państwa to bowiem miasto szczególne, co zazwyczaj podkreśla sam status prawny ośrodka stołecznego regulowany przez specjalną ustawę, staje się niezwykle ważną przestrzenią symboliczną, miejscem pokazu państwowej i narodowej siły, eksponowania i utwierdzania tożsamości, prezentowania wizerunku obcym oraz kształtowania pożądanego wizerunku na użytek obywateli – członków swojej grupy. Na przykładzie Paryża i Skopja, miast o odmiennej kontekstowo historii, chciałbym pokazać specyficzne dla przestrzeni miejskiej sposoby indukowania interpretacji, albowiem mimo oczywistych różnic oba miasta pozwalają dostrzec historyczny okres, w którym samo miasto stało się istotnym składnikiem sfery publicznej i publicznej własności symbolicznej. Wzrost znaczenia miast w Europie wiąże się bez wątpienia z procesem demokratyzacji, zaś stolice Francji i Macedonii są dobrym przykładem tej przemiany, która przestrzeń sprywatyzowaną (feudalną) bądź interpretowaną w wymiarze sakralnym (jako ziemia należąca do Boga) przekształciła w przestrzeń publiczną, będącą dobrem wspólnym obywateli i/lub dominującego narodu.Najważniejszym agensem w przestrzeni stołecznej okazuje się państwo. To biurokracja państwowa, występująca w charakterze nosiciela woli narodu, decyduje o kształtowaniu wizerunku miasta, wzmacniając te wartości, które wydają się pożądane z perspektywy reprezentowanej grupy. Brak tego czynnika skutkuje, jak w przypadku Skopje, zachowaniem lokalności i/lub przypadkowością realizowanych inwestycji publicznych. W obu omawianych przypadkach mapa i punkty orientacyjne zdradzają najważniejsze kategorie narracji narodowej, a przecież za jej kształt w znacznym stopniu odpowiada właśnie władza centralna

Art Patrons and the National Treasure: A Comparative Reading of the Croatian and Slovenian Context of the Institutionalization of Literature in Pre-Illyrism

The question of literary patronage is part of the debate about the place of literature in the national culture and cultural policy. At the root of the argument is the nowadays almost unanimous presumption that literature should have a special status within social practices, and that the literary life as such should be supported by the state through its specialized institutions. Nonetheless, that view has had a relatively short history, going back to the beginning of the 19th century, and is related to important changes in the European civilization. The essay focuses on the moment when the ancient regime of feudal order was falling down, as were the social practices related to it, and the new one was still in the offing. The old-time patronage relying on imposing individuals like Zigmund Zois or Maksimilijan Vrhovac was in decline, leaving an opening for collective patronage and civic involvement based on the principle of common usefulness, and thereafter for national institutions which were to implement cultural policy in the name of the nation. Sources from Croatian and Slovene cultural history analysed in this essay reveal the course of this transformation while principally tackling the crucial question, that of the nationalization of literature and its transformation into the instrument of national politics

Book Review: Xavier Bougarel (2018). "Islam and Nationhood in Bosnia-Hercegovina: Surviving Empires". London-New York: Bloomsbury Academic

Book Review: Xavier Bougarel (2018). Islam and Nationhood in Bosnia-Hercegovina: Surviving Empires. London-New York: Bloomsbury AcademicThe review of the latest book by Xavier Bougarel focuses on the main concepts of the work: the notion of empire as a methodological and theoretical framework, the relation between Islam and the national idea, and the process of Bosniak nation-building. Recenzja książki: Xavier Bougarel (2018). Islam and Nationhood in Bosnia-Hercegovina: Surviving Empires. London-New York: Bloomsbury AcademicRecenzja najnowszej książki Xaviera Bougarela koncentruje się na najważniejszych kwestiach, takich jak: pojęcie imperium, będące ramą ideologiczną i teoretyczną dla interpretacji autora, relacja między Islamem a ideą narodową, oraz proces definiowania narodu boszniackiego

Matoš i Radić: dwie koncepcje kultury

Antun Gustav Matoš and Antun Radić were leading the Croatian intellectuals of their era. Radić, an ethnologist, formulated the concept of culture, in which the most important significance for the national identity was attributed to the people. He considered peasantry authentic and free of contaminations, accusing the elite of cosmopolitanism and abandoning of the Croatian source values. Meanwhile, for Matoš the most important factor in the Croatian culture was opening to the foreign influences and to their creative force. As a consequence, the opposition between the writer and the ethnologist appears, corresponding to the concept of open and closed culture. Despite the use of the same dichotomy of the elites and the people, each of them assigns different values of both cultural strata. Radić politicizes the peasantry and tries to bring it to the public sphere, pretending to defend the values of the indigenous Croatian culture, while Matoš, regardless of his political nationalism, creates the elitist vision of open and inclusive culture.Antun Gustav Matoš and Antun Radić were leading the Croatian intellectuals of their era. Radić, an ethnologist, formulated the concept of culture, in which the most important significance for the national identity was attributed to the people. He considered peasantry authentic and free of contaminations, accusing the elite of cosmopolitanism and abandoning of the Croatian source values. Meanwhile, for Matoš the most important factor in the Croatian culture was opening to the foreign influences and to their creative force. As a consequence, the opposition between the writer and the ethnologist appears, corresponding to the concept of open and closed culture. Despite the use of the same dichotomy of the elites and the people, each of them assigns different values of both cultural strata. Radić politicizes the peasantry and tries to bring it to the public sphere, pretending to defend the values of the indigenous Croatian culture, while Matoš, regardless of his political nationalism, creates the elitist vision of open and inclusive culture

Likwidacja modelu osmańskiego w Bośni po 1995 roku a kryzys państwa

Abolition of the Ottoman model in Bosnia after the 1995 and the crisis of the stateIn this paper is analyzed the dis/continuity of the Ottoman tradition in Bosnia, treated not in the ethnographical or superficial perspective, but in its deeper, cultural and social aspect. The so-called Ottoman model, continued in Austro-Hungarian and Yugoslav period, was characterized by multiplicity of social actors and the lack of the obsession of national territory. The boundaries of an autonomous territory (i.e. Bosnia under Ottoman, or Habsburg and Yugoslav rule) delimitated the sphere of shared practices, and its condition depended on relations between different ethnical agents. After the 1995 predominates the tendency toward territorial and national homogenization which leads to division, and liquidation of the Bosnian state. Nonetheless, the Ottoman model is described here as ambiguous, for its inability to shape the public sphere as a space of civic subjects, not only communities. A lack of the positive idea of the state, and the lack of any legitimization of the power other than nationalism, are seen as the major sources of political and social instability in Bosnia