Vincas Kudirka’s Concept of Lithuania

The vision of Lithuania presented by Vincas Kudirka (1858-1899), a prominent leader of the Lithuanian national revival movement, was conditioned by radical social, national, political and cultural changes in Eastern and Central Europe at the end of the nineteenth century. Being subjected to the above-mentioned processes, Kudirka’s concept of Lithuania was not unchanging. Interpreting Kudirka’ s own ‘confession’ too literally, historians, literary historians and writers of reminiscences tended to simplify the changes of Kudirka’s viewpoints, especially dealing with his allegedly sudden Lithuanian transformation. A closer analysis of the relationship between the external factors and the personal attitudes of this outstanding public figure reveals his gradual conversion to and development of national consciousness, as well as the motivation of his active involvement in the Lithuanian national movement and in the struggle against the Russification and Polonization of his people. The changes in Kudirka’s viewpoints towards the role of various social layers of Lithuania in different periods are also dealt with in this study

Aesthetics · Art · Confession (law · Consciousness · Epistemology · Lithuanian · National consciousness · Political science · Politics · Sociology · Viewpoints · Visual arts · European Cultural and National Identity · Historical Geopolitical and Social Dynamics · History · Law · Philosophy · Polish Historical and Cultural Studies

• Defining ‘Lithuanian’

  Aurelija Tamošiūnaitė•Written Language & Literacy•2015

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