Adopting an approach informed by the sociology of power, this article investigates forms of intermediation between the italian authori-ties and the local population in Axis-occupied Greece during the second World War. As the italians could not rely on large communities of “eth-nic kin” in Greece –like e. g. the Germans in other european countries–, they had to largely resort to locals to govern the country both at gover-nment level and on a local scale. To conceptualize this form of interme-diation, the paper first analyses sociological approaches to occupation and colonialism, outlining the main commonalities and differences bet-ween these two settings from the point of view of the sociology of power. it then proposes to conceptualize the intermediation between occupiers and occupied with the sociological category of brokerage rather than the politically and morally charged term of collaboration. Using a wide array of sources –among others the records of the italian military tribunals in Greece that prosecuted also Greek citizens–, the paper then explores everyday interactions with a micro-analytical approach, outlining main patterns of brokerage and its effects on social stratification.

Crossing intergroup borders. Forms of Social Brokerage in Italian Occupied Greece (1941-43)

Fonzi, Paolo
Primo
2022-01-01

Abstract

Adopting an approach informed by the sociology of power, this article investigates forms of intermediation between the italian authori-ties and the local population in Axis-occupied Greece during the second World War. As the italians could not rely on large communities of “eth-nic kin” in Greece –like e. g. the Germans in other european countries–, they had to largely resort to locals to govern the country both at gover-nment level and on a local scale. To conceptualize this form of interme-diation, the paper first analyses sociological approaches to occupation and colonialism, outlining the main commonalities and differences bet-ween these two settings from the point of view of the sociology of power. it then proposes to conceptualize the intermediation between occupiers and occupied with the sociological category of brokerage rather than the politically and morally charged term of collaboration. Using a wide array of sources –among others the records of the italian military tribunals in Greece that prosecuted also Greek citizens–, the paper then explores everyday interactions with a micro-analytical approach, outlining main patterns of brokerage and its effects on social stratification.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11579/148541
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