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« 2024. # 2 (176)

The Ethnology Notebooks. 2024. № 2 (176), 283—296

UDK 355.4(470:477)”2014/2024″:355.1-053.18″364″

DOI https://doi.org/10.15407/nz2024.02.283

LOSS OF COMRADES ON THE BATTLEFIELDS WITH RACIST AGGRESSORS: EMOTIONS, PSYCHOLOGICAL STATE AND ACTIONS OF UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS

KILAR Anastasia

  • ORCID ID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3360-513X
  • Junior research associate of the Department of Historical Ethnology,
  • Ethnology Institute оf the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine,
  • 15 Svobody ave., Lviv, Ukraine, 79000,
  • Contacts: e-mail: anastasiakilar@gmail.com

Abstract. In the article, the death of a Ukrainian soldier was considered from the experience of his comrades. Three key stages were described: the moment of the warrior’s death (emotions, the experiences of fellow soldiers, reaction to the event presently); evacuation of fallen/severely wounded soldiers; removal of bodies/remains of fallen soldiers from the battlefield.

Described the moment of death of Ukrainian soldiers from the experience of their comrades. Ukrainian soldiers had to witness this tragic moment. Special attention is paid to the period of the Russian-Ukrainian war from the point of view of the relevance of this topic.

The experience of losing a brother at the front can be compared to the loss of a loved one. Although the Russian-Ukrainian war has been going on for 10 years, society and the soldiers are still learning to cope with this tragic experience. The experience of loss is still relevant to this day because Russia’s war against Ukraine continues, and since 2022 it has entered a full-scale phase, thereby increasing the number of soldiers killed at the front. This determines the relevance of our topic.

The purpose of the article is to highlight the emotions and experiences of the loss of comrades at the front, as well as to describe the stages from the moment of the Ukrainian soldier’s death to the transportation of his body to his relatives.

The object of the study is a Ukrainian soldier in the period from the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian war in 2014 to the present day, and the subject is the death of fellow Ukrainian soldiers.

The methodological basis of the research is an interdisciplinary approach, which significantly expands the boundaries of research perspectives. Oral history as a source and method plays a key role in the study of this issue. The territory of the study covers the entire modern territory of Ukraine. Chronological boundaries of the study: from the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian war in 2014 to the present (including the period of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine after February 24, 2022). The source base of the work was published and unpublished oral history sources, periodicals, media, monographs, field research materials.

Keywords: Russian-Ukrainian war, death, evacuation, soldiers, volunteers, Armed Forces.

Received 9.03.2024

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