Are stories just stories? : An analysis of the effect of intergenerational narratives about communism on ethnic identity

Abstract: Post-dictatorship reconstruction is a recurrent research topic in peace and development. Memories and the remembrance of the past, at the collective or family level can impact populations years after the beginning of their democratisation processes. The purpose of this study is to understand the impact of intergenerational transmission of memories about communism within the family on the ethnic identity of younger generations born after it. It focuses on the generation of Hungarians living in Transylvania, born after the fall of communism in 1989, which parents grew up in the same region and experienced Ceausescu’s communist dictatorship.  This paper relies on the concepts of intergenerational narratives, symbolic ethnic boundaries, and psychology theories about their effect on identity, and data from qualitative interviews and focus groups. Through a thematic analysis and a narrative discourse analysis from discursive psychology, the results show that to a certain extent, memories can be used to strengthen the ethnic identity and ethnic boundaries of the younger generations. It has also concluded that it could amplify their segregation in the future, although discriminations based on the proficiency in the Romanian language seem to be its main driver.