From hero to hero: the influence of social narratives of the 2020 Nagorno Karabkh war on the Armenian Youth Identity
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2021-08-21
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en
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Abstract
Storytelling is a way to remember the past and make sence of the present. In the same context, social narratives are collectively produced by society, inherited in schools and memorials, and used by politicians as 'stories' that drive an entire nation's social behaviour. This master thesis aims at analysing the impact of social narratives generated before, during and after the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh war and the effect on the Armenian youth identity. It delves into dominant narratives (or beliefs) that existed in Armenian society and the new ones that emerged after the war. The lack of personal memories from the 1990s war bolsters the influential role of narratives that can 'construct new memories'. The primary methodological approach is qualitative research, with on-the-spot fieldwork observation and semi-structured interviews. This thesis shows how a post-war society can abandon a dominant narrative and fastly produce new ones. In Armenia, the old 'victimisation narrative' overshadowed by the (first war) 'narrative of victory' returned, along with a nation that grieves, symbols that arise, and a youth that seems determined to develop the state or emigrate. The qualitative approach provides a fruitful insight into what post-war realisation entails for youth in rebuilding a defeated nation.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen