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Almost all:

1. Pick a group concept to discuss in the first reading circle and then use Steps 2 and 3 to run your circle # 1.

2. Warm up with the starters questions on the assigned concepts:

What are your reactions to the concept?

What do you already know about the concept?

What does the text imply about this concept?

2. Discuss the concepts with some of the following questions:

What would be an example of this concept in the assigned text?

What do you think caused this phenomenon to happen (refer back to the text)?

How would other ethnic groups of residents and demographics respond and why?

What is the counterargument from the Russian Mir/ Soviet/Empire perspective?

3. Then, post your group response towards Point 2 (what questions you discussed & bring text evidence as needed). Add your group names

4. Move to another reading circle on another concept following the same guidelines.

A group of three volunteers (Bonus 1 % for participation) will be today's response team, whose job is to respond to the whole reading circle session with a critical mindset:

observe how peers respond to the concepts in this Padlet and record your initial reactions. You are welcome to walk around to listen to any reading group.

when reconvened, reply to two peers' posts with some highlights you think are important for our week topic: language and agency. After highlights, pose a question to contrast with another historical conflict like "How is the phenomenon similar to any other historical or current ethnic conflict?" or "What is not happening the way it should?" or other cause-effect question.

You will be invited to respond to the session after two reading circles.

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"Russian as a "sophisticated" language" (Oliinyk) - before the invasion

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"Russian as a "sophisticated" language" (Oliinyk) - before the invasion

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https://www.pravda.com.ua/eng/news/2022/06/26/7354689/

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"warfare now becomes “a fixture of the entertainment” (Kot et al) - the Vietnam War or The Arab Spring

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"warfare now becomes “a fixture of the entertainment” (Kot et al) - the Vietnam War or The Arab Spring

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the resistance of the soldiers at Snake Island (Kot et al) - art example of resistance 

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the resistance of the soldiers at Snake Island (Kot et al) - art example of resistance 

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Constructing the Self: Heroic Narratives (Kot et al) - p. 9 - 13

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Constructing the Self: Heroic Narratives (Kot et al) - p. 9 - 13

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Yaroslava Yatsuba (bright_arts)

(maliunok)

(zhurawell_yura)

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Constructing the Self: Heroic Narratives (Kot et al) - p.16

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Constructing the Self: Heroic Narratives (Kot et al) - p.16

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Yurii Zhuravel (zhurawell_yura) where Kadyrov (a Chechen Republic Leader) is depicted as a symbol of oppression of Russia

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Constructing the Self: Heroic Narratives (Kot et al) - p.19-21

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Constructing the Self: Heroic Narratives (Kot et al) - p.19-21

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(#NEIVANMADE)

(natashale777)

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Constructing the Self: Victimhood Narratives pp. 22-24

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Constructing the Self: Victimhood Narratives pp. 22-24

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(maliunok)

(olkwhite)

(anta_arf)

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Constructing the ‘Other’: Shaping the Image of the Enemy - pp. 31 - 33 - Pr. Putin

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Constructing the ‘Other’: Shaping the Image of the Enemy - pp. 31 - 33 - Pr. Putin

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(shat.art88)

(maksympalenko)

(zhurawell_yura)

(marginai_)

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Constructing the ‘Other’: Shaping the Image of the Enemy - pp. 31 - 33 - Russian culture as a weapon

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Constructing the ‘Other’: Shaping the Image of the Enemy - pp. 31 - 33 - Russian culture as a weapon

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(maksympalenko)

(zosia_illustrates)

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Ukrainian Institute London - "Words of Today: What Could You Do with Your Hands, Feet, Body?"

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Ukrainian Institute London - "Words of Today: What Could You Do with Your Hands, Feet, Body?"

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min 25.18

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Fighting Talk: Language and War in Ukraine

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12 min: Catherine the Great II and Erasure of Cossacks 

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12 min: Catherine the Great II and Erasure of Cossacks 

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https://www.americanpurpose.com/articles/the-empire-that-catherine-erased-2/

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Fighting Talk: Language and War in Ukraine

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Racism - a neologism in Ukrainian (28.16 min)

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Racism - a neologism in Ukrainian (28.16 min)

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fascism and russia

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Fighting Talk: Language and War in Ukraine

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"This island, like the rest of our territory, is Ukrainian land, and we will defend it with all our might"

Even if it was a small territory, it represented the nation of Ukraine and made the act of retaliation even more powerful.

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This post immediately gave our whole group emotions such as sadness and disappointment. This picture also accurately depicts all that is happening with the going war with Ukraine which has caused Russians to attempt to repress and keep away Ukrainian identity. "The occupiers have burned all the books from the library of the church of Petro Mohyla in Mariupol" - Kalatur. This quote is an example of this phenomenon because the books burning was a political act and almost a threat to Ukrainians from Russians to follow their lead or else. The books meant more than just knowledge, they had memories from the past that are now completely gone due to Russian occupation. Mariupol was also one of the bigger battle fields in the war and it is now sadly, occupied by Russians with plans to rebuild the city entirely.

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The burning of books establishes the beginning of the Russification of Ukrainian citizens and converts them to a more potent culture, which is Russia. The readings convey the notion that the Russian language is a regional language that is spoken in schools, in different communities, etc... Having this language spoken constantly naturally suppresses the Ukrainian language and further deletes it from history. In addition, Putin is defaming the Ukrainian identities in schools by introducing them to new books with flawed ideologies regarding Ukrainian culture and identity and burning books that hurt the Russian image, which is synonymous with an autocratic leader.

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The Russian language was used in an educational and governmental light in the past, so people who grew up with that narrative, prior to the invasion are knowledgeable of the code switching they would do when in an informal, casual environment (speaking Ukrainian) and speaking Russian when discussing more serious inquiries or comparatively formal settings. Oliinyk's drawing that says "Sometimes irreversibly" captures this phenomenon through how they see their grandma code-switching before her eyes in formal and informal settings. Russian being a "sophisticated language" prior to the invasion is a reference to the fact that Russian was a language used in government and "higher-class" settings in general.

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On the first day of Russias invasion of Ukraine, Russia sent out 2 navel warships to attack and capture Snake Island. Ukrainian soldiers were told to surrender or face bombardment to which the soldiers said “go f**k yourselves” before Russians captured the island. Our initial reactions to this image was the amount of inspiration other soldiers and Ukraine citizens must’ve gotten from this sign of resistance and retaliation. This simple line that was said by the soldiers became national news and a symbol of resistance to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The artwork shows the power of resistance and fearless that the soldiers showed when facing a devastating enemy by flipping off the Russian warship in the art.

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What is the cultural impact of the book burning?

How could we compare this to Jewish literature and art within the genocide of WWll?

Can we look at the workshop we did last week with Michael Workman and discuss the implications of lost art and culture?

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They are making fun of Kadyrov through the way they are depicting him, they have created a caricature to show their disdain of him. He was known for his anti-gay rhetoric and is depicted half nude with a soldier a distance behind him. This is both our first time hearing about Kadyrov and the things that happened in Chechen. The text implies that the creation of this kind of art is a form of heroism by those protesting against war and certain political figures, the use of the art to advocate against war and inequality has proven effective.

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The questions my group has gone over were what were our first reactions to the concept and What do you think caused this to happen? Firstly when we first looked at the Instagram photos we looked at natashale777 post of a holy woman in a Kevlar jacket and holding an assault rifle, and my group reaction was the war affects everybody, in the sense that when Russia first stepped foot into Ukraine every Ukrainian was brought into the fight because their home has been invaded. The other posts from neivanmade reminded us of tarot cards and the messages in the cards are moving, a strong angle standing up for a small boy or a different angel ripping the top off of a Russian tank with the words Strenght and Justice in the corner. My group concluded that this is from Ukrainian artists in response to the Invations of Ukraine.

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Analyze the artwork deeper, what's the significance of the art being in the shape of a post stamp or anything you notice?

How does this further the concept that expression unifies people in a crisis?

How have strong emotions such as anger been considered exigence for expression? (Emotions that are commonly tied to negativity)

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Language was first used as a tool for communication of their ideas but has now become something attached to their identity, as a label.

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Initially we were confused about the depiction, it was something that needed to be looked at with a magnifying glass. Then we looked at both the pictures and the dialogue to form our interpretation of the work. We came up with the artists depicting the Ukrainian language as a part of identity and a major part of their existence and culture. The language became not just a tool to communicate but something that evolved past that.

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This image symbolizes the inner emotions correlated to Ukraine and the people. The 1993 independence refers to Ukrainian independence and establishing itself as an independent nation. In addition, the person in the image is gaining new respect and perspective of the Ukrainian language and identity, and the now that their identity is jeapordized they now need to preserve it. This phenomenon occurred due to the divide of ideologies between the Ukrainian and Russian citizens since Ukraine coveted the need to join NATO, which is an act of aggression towards the lens of Russia. The Soviet Union broke apart, which is why they gained independence.

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Russia Sophisticated Language - Safa & Ethan

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Russia Sophisticated Language - Safa & Ethan

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We both have heard about this concept beforehand and know quite a few people who learned Russian during middle and high school. Russia used to have an up-and-coming economy and has recently fallen behind other countries like the United States and China. The text implies that Russian is seen as the more 'professional' and 'serious' language my the author's family. The author specifically draws a scene of the two versions of her grandmother stating that "whenever she wants to appear 'serious' she will only speak Russian." When Russia was the Soviet Union the strength it held allowed its language to grow and be seen as more sophisticated. Ukrainians would probably tend to disagree as they would want to see their language as just as serious and sophisticated as Russian is viewed.

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The Ukrainian language is frowned upon among the Russians and is seen as a lesser language and it holds less value and education behind it. Russia has said that Ukrainian is a peasant language and there are depictions of Ukrainian books burning which represent the lesser value of the language seen by the Russians. By trying to fit in and stay relevant, Ukrainians would then later adapt to the Russian language.

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In history, Ukrainians and Russians have looked at each other as the "other". Russians view Ukraine as something to take control of, something that belongs to them. According to the two political cartoons mentioned in the prompt, Ukraine views Russia as evil, and disgusting. In one of the cartoons by Zosia_illustrates on instagram, the country of Russia is depicted as a can of rotting beans, with a gold symbol of Russia inside the can. The next cartoon, by maksympalenko on instagram depicts Putin as a vampire with many wrinkles, red eyes, and blood coming out of his mouth. The rotting beans image is, according to the text, "in order to evoke a profound sense of disgust" ( Kot et al 36).