<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>This paper presents a sociological analysis of the image of a “good village”, as portrayed in the annual Czech competition Village of the Year. It focuses on the positive representations attached to the rural in the political and expert discourse. The analysis is rooted in cultural rural sociology and in its study of rural idyll. It is argued that a specific kind of rural idyll is produced in the competition. This idyll is analysed using the photographs submitted to the competition by the villages themselves. A combination of visual methods is employed to uncover the positive values attached to the images. The results show that activity and social life play a key role in the image of a “good village” thus produced. On the other hand, there are virtually no references to agriculture.</p></abstract>

This paper presents a sociological analysis of the image of a “good village”, as portrayed in the annual Czech competition Village of the Year. It focuses on the positive representations attached to the rural in the political and expert discourse. The analysis is rooted in cultural rural sociology and in its study of rural idyll. It is argued that a specific kind of rural idyll is produced in the competition. This idyll is analysed using the photographs submitted to the competition by the villages themselves. A combination of visual methods is employed to uncover the positive values attached to the images. The results show that activity and social life play a key role in the image of a “good village” thus produced. On the other hand, there are virtually no references to agriculture.

Images Of A Good Village: A Visual Analysis Of The Rural Idyll In The “Village Of The Year” Competition In The Czech Republic

Mgr. Pavel Pospěch, Ph.D., Masaryk University Brno, Joštova 10

PhDr. Daniela Spěšná, Institute of Agricultural Economics and Information Brno, Kotlářská 53, Brno

European Countryside

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

This paper presents a sociological analysis of the image of a “good village”, as portrayed in the annual Czech competition Village of the Year. It focuses on...

Images Of A Good Village: A Visual Analysis Of The Rural Idyll In The “Village Of The Year” Competition In The Czech Republic

Published Online: Sep 19, 2015

Page range: 68 - 86

Received: Dec 05, 2014

Accepted: Jun 12, 2015

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/euco-2015-0005

Keywords
Village, rural, village of the year, representations, visual images, Czech Republic

© Pavel Pospěch et al.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Images Of A Good Village: A Visual Analysis Of The Rural Idyll In The “Village Of The Year” Competition In The Czech Republic

Published Online: Sep 19, 2015

Page range: 68 - 86

Received: Dec 05, 2014

Accepted: Jun 12, 2015

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/euco-2015-0005

KeywordsVillage, rural, village of the year, representations, visual images, Czech Republic

© Pavel Pospěch et al.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
Village, rural, village of the year, representations, visual images, Czech Republic