Anna Gudkov
Hornsby Girls High School
High Distinction
Opening a Matrioshka Doll…Which One Am I

What happens when two of the most powerful forces shaping 20th century history - colonialism and communism, intersect?

Moreover, how do these macro world forces shape the micro world of an individual?

My PIP seeks to answer the fundamental question “What drives a previously subjugated culture to rise again?” and subsequently sets out to investigate whether or not there is a Ukrainian national identity and how socialising agents have facilitated its institutionalization. At the heart of this PIP is an exploration of the relationship between the ‘me’ of social and group identity, and the ‘I’ of individual identity within the context of a decade of ‘de-Sovietism.’ Essentially, my PIP evaluates the impact of macro world change on micro world experiences.

Having left behind a Ukraine in socio-economic shambles at age 4 1/2, I am the product of the forces of macro world change and the global diaspora. Socialised in a Russian-speaking environment, I kept my affiliation with the Russian culture and national identity intact, while my Ukrainian heritage slowly deteriorated. It was only after pursuing an intercultural communication experience with a 17 year old Ukrainian friend that I realized the influence of environmental and socialisation agents in shaping cultural identification. Hence, my PIP has facilitated a reflection on my own process of enculturation, and lends itself to the question: What would I be like if I had stayed in Ukraine?

For centuries Ukraine has been under the totalitarian hammer of Sovietism. As one of 15 Soviet republics, the aim of the government was to create an over-aching pan-national Soviet identity which was supposed to supersede ethnic and national orientations. Socialised into the consciousness of citizens through the institutionalization of Russian as the lingua franca of the USSR, many individuals internalized this ‘Soviet identity’ which “didn’t have a concrete national cultural affiliation… it was a blend of different groups and languages.”

So what happens to these individuals when the basis of their self-identification – the Soviet Union – disintegrates?

While millions are faced with an “identity vacuum,”the process of de-Sovietism presents a unique opportunity for the previously subjugated Ukrainian national identity to re-emerge, institutionalise and flourish.

Ultimately the questions facing the post-colonial and post-communist peoples of Ukraine are: Who are we and where do we go from here? While the national response has been: “we are the selves whose identities are threatened and must be preserved,” the question of this macro world impact on personal self-identification has been more complex and varied. My qualitative use of interviews to analyse the effect of Ukrainian independence on the identification of Ukrainian citizens has revealed an ‘identity crisis’ which goes deep within the vestiges of Russian-Ukrainian history.