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How should we think about Europe? The model adaptation and model formation strategy of the Hungarian political elite
110-133Views:269In the past decades, researchers in Hungary have looked at almost all segments of the behavior and organization of elites, nevertheless they have dealt surprisingly little with how external actors (Europe, the West) affect the actions and way of thinking of the elites. The lack of approaches from this perspective is so apparent because the European orientation of the elites has changed twice in the past thirty years. (In the 1980s and starting from the second half of the 1990s.) The essay focuses on presenting two concepts of Europe, of which one is based on model adaptation (the opposition represents this approach) the other on model formation (which is characteristic of the governing parties). The essay shows the origins of both, as well as their connections to macro and micro political motifs. Within the frameworks of this, the study touches upon why the appearance of the model adaptation perspective was adequate in the 1980s as well as to why the model forming approach to Europe appeared on the right in the middle of the 1990s as its challenger. The analysis does more than just dynamically present the past thirty years, it also aims to show that we have to integrate Hungarian political history in a broader sense into our studies if we want to understand the changes that have occurred in the past decades concerning the relationship of the elites to the West. The stratum which Fidesz has brought to surface lays deep in Hungarian political history. We have to take this stratum into consideration even if we find this perhaps unattractive and we reject it.
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East or West? Finnish national identification in the light of historical narratives
33-57Views:57The study presents the main milestones in the formation of Finnish national and state identity, the process of building the Finnish nation state, based on the regional archetypes of historian Jenő Szűcs and researcher Antonsich. The analysis of the literature presents four main identity narratives of Finland. These narratives do not follow each other chronologically, but are time-to-time reinforced at different historical periods and turning points. These narratives include: „Finland has always been part of the Western world,” „Neither East nor West,” „Finland as a bridge between East and West,” „Finland as a northern country.” During the study the influence of Eastern and Western European historical developments on Finland’s historical self-identification, described by Szűcs, is highlighted, which includes both Eastern, Byzantine (Russian Empire) and Western (Swedish Empire) elements and symbols. In various approaches, we view identity conveyed by the state as a construct that was created under the influence of the ruling elites of the time, but for the purpose of forming and strengthening national identity. These elites mainly used folk motifs and social identities that have strengthened the sense of belonging to the nation among the predominantly agrarian population of Finland. After all, the national identity expressed by citizens and the identity narrative conveyed by the state can influencing each other resulting in a stronger sense of identity and identification. In the case of Finland, the most significant events influencing the formation of national identity include the wave of Russification that began at the end of the 19th century and the policy of Finnish neutrality that developed during the Cold War. The former led directly to the creation of the Finnish nation state, while the latter represented a kind of forced return to Eastern identity, reinforcing the narrative of Finland as a bridge between East and West, which is also often emphasized in the case of Hungary. Today, Finland’s identification with the West is clearly pronounced, but nationalist, populist ruling parties, primarily the Finns Party, are promoting narratives that once again bring the „neither West nor East” approach to the fore. In addition, the national populists emphasize Finland’s marginality and separateness, which is manifested in the emphasis on efforts to break away from the European Union.
