A Study Of "Victimhood Nationalism" In Ukraine In The Context Of National Identity

Since independence in 1991,Ukraine has made it a priority to rid itself of the influence of Soviet history and culture and to promote the construction of a national identity.History textbooks are the support for building the national identity of the young generation.During the past three decades,the government has attached great importance to history education,adjusted textbooks several times,built an independent view of history,and strengthened young students’ sense of national consciousness and national identity.Through the politicization and legitimization of collective trauma,“victimhood nationalism” aims to coalesce the memory of collective trauma into a collective identity,thereby promoting the unity of citizens under the historical memory of national tragedy and building a solid national identity.The core of “victimhood nationalism” is to establish the identity of “victims” who were killed or suffered physical or mental trauma in history and to promote the "tragic heroism" that led the country to independence.The “tragic heroism” that led the country to independence.The tragic memory of the trauma remains forever,and the spirit of heroes who defended their country and national dignity is immortalized.Looking back at the history textbooks for the tenth and eleventh grades after Ukraine’s independence,the “victimhood nationalism” narrative gradually deepened in order to achieve the goal of “de-Sovietization and de-Russianization”.First,the textbooks portray the humility and suffering of the Ukrainian people,using the Holodomor and other events as examples,and attacking the Soviet Union for its bad behavior toward Ukraine.Second,the textbook highly praises the heroic national independence groups represented by the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists(OUN)and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army(UPA),so that students can correctly recognize the heroic images and deeds of heroic people who fought bravely to promote national independence,help them form Ukrainian-oriented historical values,understand the political behavior of the country,and strengthen their sense of national identity,pride and cohesion,thus strengthen ethnic identity,cultural identity and political identity.“Victimhood nationalism” in history textbooks can visually show how Ukraine constructed its national identity through history education,which helps explain the existing identity conflict between Russia and Ukraine and understand the reasons why Russia-Ukraine conflicts are difficult to be bridged.However,the narrative of“victimhood nationalism” is still problematic for the consolidation of national identity:First,“victimhood nationalism” may be seen by the political elite as a tool to promote mutual opposition to Russia,to gain power and support,and to maintain regime stability.Second,the extreme characterization of some historical events in the framework of “victimhood nationalism” lacks sufficient historical support,and the image of “heroic figures” is questioned.Third,the “victimhood nationalism” narrative makes it difficult to reconcile the rendering of the national consciousness of the Ukrainian subject with the reality of multi-ethnic pluralism,which exacerbates the differences between the East and West of the country as well as between Russia and Ukraine.Therefore,the use of “victimhood nationalism” to build national identity requires more thought.