Ethnic stereotypes of the Ukrainians (Little Russians) and Belarusians (Belorussians) in the visual texts in Russian culture in the second half of the 19th century: Issues of interpretations

Abstract

The article analyzes a number of visual representations of «Little Russians» / «Malorusy» (Ukrainians) and Belarusians («Belorussians» / «White Russians»), which were addressed to a wide range of Russian society in the 1860s – 1900s and which were formed under the influence of literature, scientific and popular ethnographies descriptions and text-books. These visual texts were creating the stereotypical images of peoples / nations (so as of the Russian people) in mass consciousness the Russian Empire. The works that are accessible primarily by the mass audience (genre canvases, book illustrations, magazine lithographs, advertisements, posters, postcards etc) are analyzed in context of ethnic stereotypes (of «Little Russians» / «Malorusy» (Ukrainians) and of «Belorussians» / «White Russians» (Belarusians)) reflections. The author is considered some methodological problems deals with stereotypes’ researching in the field of the identification of «the Russian people» as the unity of Great Russians, Little Russians and White Russians during imperial nation-building. Complications of interpreting visual ethnic images are also due to the differences of discourse of the Ukrainian and Belarusian identities history and national movements in the Russian Empire of the 19th century. In particular, Ukrainian Soviet and modern historiography considers many artists to the pantheon of national culture. But if we accept such attributions, it turns out that stereotypes of the «others» (the heterostereotypes of Little Russians / Ukrainians) turns out to be their auto stereotypes. If we proceed from the assumptions that the creators of the images belonged to the Russian («all-Russian») culture, the questions arise did they interpret them as specifically ethnic, or as the embodiment of regional / gender or only the social (the peasant) variations?