Constructing the historical past – mythical background. The case of Belarus at the turn of the 20th century

Abstract

The past is a complex structure determined repeatedly by different sets of factors that come from the present. These two dimensions of time are in a relation of constant dependence and influence. On one side stands the past as the source of historical tradition that influences the course of the present and on the other side it is the present that (re)shapes and restructures the past for contemporary needs and purposes. This article studies the myth as one of the main aspects that forms the contemporary image of the historical past. In the wider historiographical context, this phenomenon has been regularly investigated in the last few decades. The novum which this article brings to historical science would be the detection and description of the (mythological) roots of the contemporary visions of Belarusian past.