Zwischenwelt. Die Suche nach Anerkennung und Identität in einem Dorf an der Grenze
AutorenJohannes Moser, Dresden
Im Rahmen verschiedener Feldforschungen zwischen 1987 und 1996 wurden die Bewohner eines kleinen Ortes an der steirisch-slovenischen Grenze untersucht. Interessierte zunächst lediglich deren periphere Lage, so stellte sich bald heraus, dass die dort lebende Bevölkerung zu einem Großteil aus slovenischen Muttersprachlern bestand. Diese Entdeckung eines sorgsam gehüteten Geheimnisses evozierte ein Abwehrverhalten, weil damit der mühsame Kampf um Anerkennung und die Suche nach Identität gestört wurde. Der Beitrag analysiert den schwierigen Balanceakt der Blattener Bevölkerung zwischen Selbstbehauptung und Assimilation.
Within the context of a field research project between 1987 and 1996, the inhabitants of the little border village Blatten were examined with regard to their peripheral location at the boarder between Styria (Austria) and Slovenia. Very soon though we realized that most of the people living there were native Slovenian speaking, and that we were about to provoke a strong resistance within the inhabitants of Blatten, that neither we had expected nor were prepared for. Forcing our way into the every day life of the villagers had disturbed their arduous fight for appreciation and recognition as well as their search for identity. - The article therefore tries to analyse this difficult balancing act of the inhabitants of Blatten between assimilation and self-assertion that finally became the main focus of our field research.
