This dissertation seeks to establish the relationship between formal political processes, such as NATO and EU expansion, and the formation and reconstruction of identity, in this case “Western” identity and “European” identity.
By studying this nexus between political action and identity formation some conclusions regarding the meanings of those identities are drawn. The
methodology used to study this intersection of politics and identity is a content analysis of newspaper articles covering NATO and EU expansion from April 17, 1991 to April 19, 2002 found in the Lexis-Nexis newspaper database. The output
of this analysis is a series of representations, not only of Eastern Europe but also of specific states within Eastern Europe (such as Russia) and regional identities such as Central Europe or the Baltic States. These representations are taken (with historical evidence) to constitute, to varying degrees, the “Other” for NATO and the EU. Thus, these representations are used to reflect back on the identities that are inherent to those organizations, namely that of “the West” and “Europe”.
