Ukraine Diaries: A Ethnographic Correspondent Documents The War
On 15 April 2022, I travelled to Ukraine, intending to stay there for a month. A simple question underpins my research trip: how do we behave when the world collapses around us? We oppose it with weapons, mutual help, aid, and humanitarian work. We watch it in disbelief. We flee it. We take action.
Throughout my month-long trip, I endeavoured to document the day-to-day experience of the war, based on accounts from civilians who are reacting to this overwhelming chain of events.
War as an experience of the world collapsing
War is, above all else, an experience of the world collapsing. It is the loss of loved ones; it is exile and destruction. The disappearance of reference points that usually structure daily life puts people’s psyche to the test. The world’s collapse is not just a tragedy ...