The Internet as a Basis for Research on Ethnic Identity: Polish Blogs in Lithuania

Abstract

This article discusses an important type of public communication taking place in Lithuania – internet blogs written in Polish. The study presents how they function, outlines the reasons behind their creation, and analyses the topics which they concern. As this is a sphere of uncontrolled communication, the author makes an attempt to present various social attitudes and to analyse subjective opinions on cultural and identity issues. The linguistic ways of expressing them are also an equally important issue. In this study, we assume that the sphere of the internet, although so far little explored, can be a very good basis for research on the way ethnic identities are shaped. The analysis of the genres of texts posted on blogs or social networking sites indicates that they are characterised by rhetorical coherence, enter into various relationships with each other, creating a blogosphere, and have a dialogical nature. They are usually written in a general language with regional accretions. A frequent phenomenon is using these features as the hallmark of a group, a factor integrating the internet community. Due to the fact that the authors of these websites are usually young people, a common phenomenon is the colloquial linguistic marking of statements, striving to exaggerate certain events, using stylistically marked lexis. We are dealing here with the colloquial style preserved in the written version.