Thinking in terms of dichotomies – either/or, tradition/modernity, people/nation, myth/reality – is rarely productiv...

Thinking in terms of dichotomies – either/or, tradition/modernity, people/nation, myth/reality – is rarely productive. The most effective formulations will combine tradition with modernity, the secular with the sacred and reality with myth. The mythical worldview is inherent in every person, modern or not – we simply cannot live without it. It manifests itself especially powerfully in times of crisis and upheaval. –Yaroslav Hrytsak, Ukraine: The Forging of a Nation, trans. Dominique Hoffman (PublicAffairs, 2024), “Interlude: A Brief History of Ukrainian Song."