engleski

Relation and attitude of the young people toward "problematic/difficult past" of the Second World War (1941 – 1945) and the Homeland War (1991 – 1997) in Croatia

Institute of social science “Ivo Pilar” is one of the sixteen research institutions from 14 European countries participating in the research project MYPLACE (Memory, Youth, Political Legacy And Civic Engagement) on the theme „Democracy and the shadows of totalitarianism and populism: the European experience”. One of the goals of this project is to explore how young people's social participation is shaped by the shadows (past, present and future) of totalitarianism and populism in Europe. This project is diveded into ten sections ("work packages”), and within the second one, “Interpreting the past (The construction and transmission of historical memory”), is analyzed young people’s interpretations of the “difficult”/”problematic” period in the national/regional history. In Croatian context it is analyzed “difficult period” of the Second World War (1941 – 1945) and the Homeland War (1991 – 1997). Research is methodological based on expert interviews and focus groups with young people in the ‘sites of memories’ (Jasenovac Memorial Site and Croatian History Museum) and analyze of the relevant sources and literature. The intention of this presentation is to analyze the results of this study with special focus on how are the “problematic”/”difficult” periods in the national history of Croatia represented and interpreted in the “mainstream” historical discourse and to find out how are theses historical memories experienced (interpreted, internalised and enacted) by young people. In other words, one of the goals of this presentation is to point out some of important aspects of traumatic moments in recent Croatian national history and to find out how it is, this kind of “cultural memory” transmitted across young generations.

Youth; History; Croatia; memory; Second World War; Homeland War.

nije evidentirano