The main purpose of this study is to gain a better understanding of how first and second generation immigrants from former Yugoslavia experience and precive their national identity. Furthermore to understand differences and similarities between first-generation and second-generation immigrants based on inbetweenship. Previous research has shown that people with one or more cultural backgrunds tend to develop more fluid identity in comparson to people who only have one cultural backgrund. Furthermore, previous research has also shown that people with immigrant background or a multi-ethnic background tend to end up in betweenship, to greater extent. To achieve the study`s purpose and answer the research questions I have chosen to conduct a qualitative interview study based on semi-structured interviews with first and second generation immigrants from former Yugoslavia living in Sweden. The theories used in the study to analyze the result were inbetweenship and national identity as a grounded conceptual definition.  The results showed that first-generation immigrants from former Yugoslavia did not perceive themselves as Swedes, but in all cases referred to their ethnic origin when speaking about their national identity and identity perception. The results also showed that second-generation immigrants partly experienced their identity in similar way. However, second-generation immigrants tended to experience their identity as Swedish and not in relation to their ethnic origin in half of the cases.

All Roads Lead to the Snow-Capped Mountains: An Examination of Snow in Norwegian Nation Building During the Late 19th Century. Uppsala University: Dep. of History of Science and Ideas, Bachelor of Art’s thesis, spring term 2024. This essay examines three literary works by Norwegian polar explorer Fridtjof Nansen. The purpose is to explore the ways in which snow played a part in Norwegian nationalism at the end of the 19th century. At the time that Nansen’s books were originally published, Norway had been at the political and cultural mercy of its neighboring nations for the past five centuries. An ambition for complete independence was brewing, and Fridtjof Nansen became part of a group of intellectuals tasked with creating a new national identity, one that was constructed through the creation of cultural borders and visions of a nation aligned with a perceived glorious past. National romanticism had a strong grip on Europe in general during this time, and infusing the national identity with a romanticized nature was commonplace. Norway is no exception to this, but the argument put forth here is that snow played a particular part in creating the new nation, aside from the rest of nature. Fridtjof Nansen personified, through his own activism and resistance to the unions, the Norwegian identity, and became in a sense synonymous with it. Through his personal relationship with snow, snow became personal to the nation.

This Master thesis investigates the concept of “die dummen Schweden”, and how it is used in the Swedish press during the period 1855–1950. This is done with the aim to, through analysis of the concept, shed light on the rhetorical and contextual use of the phrase “die dummen Schweden”. There is also an aim to explore what the use of the concept reflects in terms of national identity and national self-image, and what that in turn indicates about images of the 'other'. This is done by a combined theoretical framework, containing three parts: Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe's discourse theory, dialogical concepts from Mikhail Bakhtin and an imagological part. The theoretical framework is applied through a textual analysis, where the emphasis lies on viewing the articles as dialogical in the Bakhtinian sense, and the conceptual use as part of an articulatory practice. The analysis of the conceptual use of the phrase ”die dummen Schweden” during the period highlights two overarching themes. From 1855 and onwards, the dominating view of “die dummen Schweden” is that of the expression as signifying a real and existing belief abroad, that the foreigner says and thinks about the Swedes. Primarily it is a belief projected onto Germans, but the conceptual use showcases a modularity regarding who the concept “die dummen Schweden” is ascribed to. In the early 20th-century a different discursive articulation enters the press. This consists of deconstructing the former belief, and questioning its facticity as an expression being used abroad. Rather, “die dummen Schweden” is here explained as a self-image, something constructed by Swedes for Swedes. Although the notion of ”die dummen Schweden” as something constructed and as a self-image indicates a shift in the discursive economy surrounding the concept, both ontological views co-exist throughout the time period. Through the analysis of the concept, images of Swedishness emerge, such as the notion of the Swede as naive and easily duped when in contact with foreigners. These are images that are articulated in relation to images of the 'other'. This study therefore, through the lens of the concept of “die dummen Schweden”, provides insight to how national identity during the period was being formulated in relation to images of the national self, images of others and the space in between, the projected images of what they think of us.

The purpose of this thesis is to examine the role of identity when it comes to European integration. Specifically, the citizen of the European Union’s identity as exclusive national or as transnational. What does the social constructivist theory say when it comes to the role of EU-citizens identity and European integration? I also want to contribute to strengthen the social constructivist theory in political science and international politics. I will examine this through a discourse analysis on four different selected materials. A campaign webpage from the Vote Leave group who ran a campaign to make the Great Britain leave the European Union, an interview the German newspaper der SPIEGEL did with Marine Le Pen who is the party leader of the French right-winged party Rassemblent National, a debate article written by the French president Emmanuel Macron and the Swedish party Liberalernas webpage campaign for the European Parliament elections 2019. I analyse how the discourse these four examples shape and creates the feeling of national or transnational identity and what the message connected to that identity-making says about European integration. With my discourse analysis and the theories of Thomas Risse and Catherine E. De Vries on social constructivism, identity and European integration I analyse and see that those who identify exclusively with a national identity are less keen on solidarity between nations, common policies and have a xenophobic view as oppose to those who have a transnational identity who are positive towards solidarity between nations, want a closer European integration and are not hostile towards migrants. I come to the conclusion that the identity of the EU-citizens is a major factor in human action, political mobilization, political action as in choosing and voting for a party, the EU-institutions way of negotiating on common political issues, public opinion and election outcomes. This means that feeling of an exclusive national or transnational identity is an important factor of European integration.

No description available.

This thesis concerns the development of Swedish ice hockey as a national phenomenon during the period 1920–1972. The dissertation explores how the sport of ice hockey in just over half a century was transformed from a rather insignificant North American cultural import to one of Sweden’s most treasured pursuits by and large, and harbouring a national team (known as “Tre Kronor”) that at the height of its popularity in 1970 gathered almost the whole nation (82 percent of the adult population) in front of TV-sets during national game broadcasts. The analytical approach of the study is grounded in the theoretical assumption that “to be Swedish” is something you “learn” on a daily basis, and that an investigation of how “the nation” is constructed as an imagined community must see to the interplay between national rhetoric on the one hand and national practice on the other. This means that the analysis moves on two different levels, where the first is comprised of the sporting practice in itself (teams, games, players etc.), while the other deals with the conception of ice hockey in relation to national identity. The empirical investigation shows that the introduction of ice hockey in Sweden was “launched from above” under the influence of unbridled nationalistic sentiment in Sweden at large at the turn of the 20th century. The study also shows that during the inter-war era the Swedish Ice Hockey Federation promoted the spread of ice hockey in Sweden by stressing the game’s benefits as a more practical sport than the similar and already established winter sport, bandy. It is also argued that in most cases it was not so much a genuine passion for the game itself, but instead prosaic factors (economical considerations, sporting success and maintenance of ice surface etc.) that made sporting clubs take up ice hockey. After World War II the public interest in ice hockey exploded in Sweden. In the cold war era, Tre Kronor came to function as a thermometer of how the so called Swedish model stood up in comparison to the superpowers of the world. The analysis also underlines the importance of the comprehensive organizational and moral rearmament of Swedish ice hockey at large conducted by the Swedish Ice Hockey Federation in the post-war era, since it helped its cultural incorporation in the Swedish welfare state and its connection to Swedish national identity

The paper examines the compatibility between the Swedish principle of transparency and EU’s general data protection regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR). The question of compatibility between the right of access to public documents in Sweden and the EU regulation regardng protection of personal data have been relevant since EU started to legislate the area. However, for the first time a general regulation regarding processing of personal data is enforced which brings the problem to a head. Focusing on the right to public documents (a part of the Swedish principle of transparency) the relevant regulations in GDPR is examined to find possible conflicts with the principle of transparency. It is found that the vast opportunities to exception from the principal rules and the possibility of national special regulation solves many of the conflicts, even though some remain. The perception of the Swedish government in regard to article 86 in GDPR, which allows the member states to reconcile the GDPR with the right to public documents, is that the Swedish principle of transparency is granted precedence over the GDPR. The opinion of the Swedish government does not stand valid regarding the textual content in the regulation nor its purpose and goals. It would have been desirable if the government had made a closer investigation regarding what exception from the principal rules to use, and what national special regulation that is necessary, for the practice of the Swedish right of access to public documents. The analysis in the paper concludes that the principle of transparency and the GDPR can possibly be compatible. Article 86 will be of importance after the of- fered exceptions in the specific rights in the GDPR have been used. The article needs to be put in relation to the protection for personal data offered in the Swedish national legislative that limits the right of access to public documents. Furthermore, the question of respect from EU concerning the national constitutional identity is examined regarding its role reconciling the union law and the Swedish principle of trans- parency. It is stated that it may be of importance for a, from a Swedish transparency perspective, beneficial interpretation of article 86 in the CJEU. The paper also investigates the question of Sweden’s transferring of competence concerning the principle of transparency. It is stated that to the extent EU does not provide a protection of the right of access to public documents equal to the law in Sweden a Swedish court could disallow the competence transfer which passed EU that legislative power. / I framställningen utreds den svenska offentlighetsprincipens förenlighet med EU:s dataskyddsförordning (EU) 2016/679. Frågan om förenlighet mellan offentlighetsprincipen och EU:s reglering rörande personuppgiftsskydd har varit relevant sedan EU började lagstifta på området. Däremot har för första gången en allmän förordning rörande behandling av personuppgifter stiftats vilket ställer problemet på sin spets. Med fokus på handlingsoffentligheten utreds det relevanta regelverket i dataskyddsförordningen för att undersöka eventuella konflikter gentemot offentlighetsprincipen. Det konstateras att de många undantag och möjliga nationella särregleringar som förordningen erbjuder löser många av de konflikter som uppstår, men vissa kvarstår. Den svenska regeringen är av uppfattningen att artikel 86 i dataskyddsförordningen, som möjliggör sammanjämkning mellan förordningen och allmänhetens rätt att få tillgång till allmänna handlingar, innebär att offentlighetsprincipen fullt ut kan ges företräde framför förordningen. Den svenska uppfattning framstår inte som hållbar utifrån förordningens ordalydelse och bakomliggande syften och mål. Det hade varit önskvärt om regeringen närmare låtit utreda vilka undantag och nationella särregleringar som varit nödvändiga för att fortsatt kunna tillämpa handlingsoffentligheten. Analysen i framställningen visar att troligen går det att förena offentlighetsprincipen med dataskyddsförordningen. Artikel 86 blir av betydelse efter de i förordningen erbjudna undantagen i de specifika rättigheterna uttömts. Artikeln måste sättas i relation till det skydd för personuppgifter som i svensk nationell rätt begränsar handlingsoffentligheten. Vidare blir frågan om EU:s respekt för den nationella konstitutionella identiteten behandlad rörande dess betydelse för en sammanjämkning av EU-rätten och den svenska offentlighetsprincipen. Det konstateras att den kan ha betydelse för en, till svensk fördel, offentlighetsvänlig tolkning av artikel 86 i EU-domstolen. Framställningen utreder även frågan om svensk kompetensöverlåtelse till EU rörande offentlighetsprincipen. Slutsatsen är att i den mån EU inte erbjuder ett jämbördigt skydd för rätten till allmänna handlingar likt den svenska rätten kan svensk domstol underkänna överlåtelsen av kompetens som tillät EU att inskränka offentlighetsprincipen.

No description available.

Is the credibility of today's Swedish security policy under question? Through two world wars and the years that followed Sweden has invoked a policy of neutrality and military nonalignment. This policy has come to be perceived as an integral part of the Swedish national identity. Is it possible then that Sweden’s past and present strategic narratives could be contested? This thesis investigates whether or not there is consistency in the narratives expressed by both right wing Swedish governments and socialist Swedish governments. The narratives of both parties are examined during two separate eras of history; the Cold War era of the 1980s is compared with the current more globalized era of the 2010s. A constructivist perspective is utilized in the analysis and a narrative analysis is applied. The results show that there has been significant consistency in the narratives of Swedish security policy from both right wing and socialist governments. There is much greater variation shown between the two eras than there is between the two parties themselves. / Är dagens svenska säkerhetspolitik trovärdig eller omstridd? Allt sedan världskrigen har svenska regeringar förhållit sig till en grundläggande idé om svensk neutralitet och alliansfrihet. Denna politik har kommit att betraktas som en väsentlig del av svensk nationell identitet. Samtidigt har inriktningen för den svenska säkerhetspolitiken förändrats vid ett antal tillfällen under de senaste decennierna och gått från neutralitet till solidaritet. Är det då möjligt att gångna som nutida svenska strategiska narrativ är omstridda? Denna uppsats undersöker hur konsekventa svenska säkerhetspolitiska narrativ har varit. Detta genom att granska de narrativ som konstruerats av respektive socialdemokratiska och borgerliga regeringskoalitioner. Dessa narrativ jämförs både inom och mellan två historiska epoker; det kalla krigets 1980-tal och det nutida globaliserade 2010-talet, med specifika nedslag för åren 1982, 1987, 2009 och 2015. Uppsatsen tar utgångspunkt i ett konstruktivistiskt perspektiv och en narrativanalys tillämpas i analysen. Resultatet indikerar en betydande samstämmighet inom svensk säkerhetspolitik mellan borgerliga och socialdemokratiska regeringar. En betydligt större variation framträder i en jämförelse emellan de olika tidsepokerna än emellan samtida regeringar av olika politiska färger.

This is a multimodal discourse analytical study about national identity in russian film posters specifically in regards to four themes, posters that demonstrates wars, conflicts, violence or weapons. The aim of the study is to illustrate how national identity is portrayed in russian film posters, in relation to these four above themes from the start of the Soviet union 1922, until the end of the union 1991, plus four years ahead. This is studied by looking at how these four above themes are emphasized during different time periods, how the common history is described during different time periods, which similarities and differences that can be deduced from this, and how the question “who are we as a nation?” can be deduced from the pictures. The study also discusses the problem regarding media and its potential to influence, with a focus on the film media and the film poster, since these mediums have a huge potential to create a certain imagined community. For this reason it becomes important to understand who controls the media, since the one with control also beholds the power to decide what the nation identity should consist of, and how it should be portrayed. The study shows that the national identity in russian film posters is portrayed with a strong interconnection to wars, conflicts, violence and weapons during the whole investigation period, but how these themes are portrayed differs between the early/mid Soviet period and the late/post-Soviet period. The early/mid period puts a focus mainly on a strong patriotism where the soldier and the hero are frequently used motifs, which could be interpreted as motifs that are meant to eliminate questions about death in relation to wars. This could be seen as a result of an autocratic state controlled media. The late/post period instead emphasizes a criticism interconnected with conflicts with a focus on motifs like blood and dead bodies, that could be interpreted as motifs that demonstrate the tragic consequences of a violence. This could instead be seen as a result of a media that has been affected by a public sphere that has opened up, where the citizens are allowed to voice their opinions. The similarities is henceforth that the whole investigation period emphasizes a russian hegemony that puts a focus on the “russian” of the nation. The study recommends further studies in the area, either by investigating more themes in regards to film posters and national identity, or by investigating how another country portrays the national identity or the common history, there amongst war memories, in a media material. / Det här är en multimodal diskursanalytisk studie om gestaltning av nationell identitet i ryska filmaffischer, specifikt kopplat till fyra teman, affischer som gestaltar krig, konflikter, våld eller vapen. Studien har som syfte att illustrera hur nationell identitet uttrycks i ryska filmaffischer, kopplat till dessa fyra ovan teman från Sovjetunionens start 1922, till efter dess fall 1991, och fyra år framåt. Detta studeras genom att titta på hur dessa fyra ovan teman har betonats under olika tidsperioder, hur den gemensamma historieskrivningen har gestaltats under olika tidsperioder, vilka likheter och skillnader som går att utläsa från detta, samt hur frågan om “vem är vi som nation?” kan utläsas ur bilderna. Studien diskuterar även problematiken kring media och dess påverkanspotential i speciellt avseende till filmmediet och filmaffischen, då dessa medium har potential att skapa en viss föreställd gemenskap. Problematiken blir därmed vem som har kontroll över filmmediet, då den som har kontroll är den som besitter makten att bestämma vad nationsidentiteten ska bestå av och hur den ska gestaltas. Studien visar att den nationella identiteten uppvisar en stark koppling till krig, konflikter, våld och vapen under hela undersökningsperioden, men hur dessa teman gestaltas skiljer sig dock åt från tidiga/mitt Sovjettiden till sena/post-Sovjet tiden. Den tidiga/mitt perioden lägger främst fokus på en stark patriotism där soldaten och hjälten är vanligt förekommande motiv, som kan tolkas som motiv som ska eliminera frågor om död i samband med krig. Detta kan vidare tolkas som ett resultat av att en autokratisk stat har kontrollerat media. Den sena/post perioden betonar istället en kritik i samband med konflikter genom ett fokus på motiv som blod och döda kroppar, som kan tolkas demonstrera de tragiska konsekvenserna av ett våld. Detta kan istället tolkas som ett resultat av att media har påverkats av att en offentlig sfär har öppnats upp, där medborgare får lov att uttrycka sina åsikter. Likheterna är dock att hela undersökningsperioden betonar en rysk hegemoni som lägger fokus på det “ryska” i nationen. Studien rekommenderar fortsatt forskning av området, antingen genom att undersöka fler teman kopplat till nationell identitet i filmaffischerna, eller genom undersökning av hur andra länder länder gestaltar den nationella identiteten eller den gemensamma historien, däribland krigsminnen, i ett medialt material.