Reinventing Identites

1
Reinventing Identites

• Rejecting Communism through Niche Marketing and
  the new flexibility

2
5 min history of Poland

• Long history of independent State Hood
• Partitioned in 1795, looses independence
• Independence regained at end of WWI
• Occupied by Germany at beginning of WWII
• Germans replaced by Russians at end of War
• Poland regains independence again in 1989

3
Communism in Poland

• Stalin installs Communist Government in Poland
• Communist regime seen as illegitimate
• Rhetoric of equality leads to pressures of
  normalization/homogonazation

4
Krakow
Cultural Capital of Poland Seen as threat by
Stalin
5
Nowa Huta

• Project in Social Engineering
• Goal Create perfect socialist city
• Barricks for those working in Steal Factory
• Built by workers

6
Krakow
7
Nowa Huta
8
Resistance

• Znajomosci horizontal social networks
• People get access to goods not otherwise
  available
• Allows Solidarnosc (opposition movement) to bring
  workers and intellectuals together

9
1989 and Aftermath

• In 1989, Solidarnosc is successful and Communism
  falls
• Violent rejection of Communist ideals
• Americana becomes cultural capital
• Desire to redefine identities
• Desire to stress individuality
• Desire to Consume

10
Communism Rejected Niche Marketing

• Niche Marketing specific products for specific
  needs
• Allows companies to make more money
• Gives consumers more flexibility for creating
  identities

11
Creating New Identities Kierownik to Menadzer

• Kierownik middle managers of communist regime
• Enact orders from above, thus seen as rigid
• Menadzer American style middle managers
• Flexible and independent, problem solvers

12
Americana and Cultural Capital

• Managers (kierownicy) need to reinvent themselves
  as more flexible and more American
• More attractive to American Business
• Improve status within Poland

13

• Kierownik means manager
• Kierownik also means tram conductor!!