A Sense of Belonging to War in Ukraine

Abstract

This reflection deals with the concept ‘sense of belonging’ in its relation to war in Ukraine. It shows the insiders’ perspective of this feeling and its role in everyday life behavior of Ukrainians. It raises up the problem of constructing a sense of belonging to war. What makes people feel the belonging? How collective experience creates collective belonging and how collective it actually is?

Reflection regards a sense of belonging on macro and micro level in its relation to solidarity from one side and in-group and out-group communication from the other side. The author also reflects about the ethics of belonging to war and appropriate and inappropriate behavior in this situation. The last part deals with the representation of a sense of belonging to war in verbal (what happens with language during the war?) and visual (in online and offline everyday life) form.