Refuge or Resourse: Home and Nostalgia in Postsocialist Estonia

The focus of this article is on nostalgia as it appears in the representations of home decoration in postsocialist Estonia. This theme is explored, describing a dialogue and conflict between different versions relating to the past. The empirical material comprises qualitatively analysed in-depth interviews and articles in home decoration journals from 1997–2008. Examining some dimensions and mechanisms of nostalgia in this specific context enables us to demonstrate how the transformation from Soviet everyday culture into Western consumer culture is conceptualised through ideas about the home. I will suggest that in Estonian everyday life nostalgia is not only a form of escapism into the past from the uncertain present and identity problems, but it also works as a resource to cope with the traumatic past, negotiate and forge new identities.

Kannike A., Refuge or resourse: home and nostalgia in postsocialist Estonia // Journal of ethnology and folkloristics. Vol. 3 (1). 2009. Pp. 57-72.