Dehumanization Practices: Effects of Violence on Self-Identity in Diana Balyko’s Plays

Abstract Diana Balyko (1979) is one of the most prominent Belarusian contemporary playwrights writing in Russian and Belarusian. Despite not adhering completely to the so-called post-Soviet New Drama, Balyko’s production is heavily influenced by the theatrical movement, as is evident by the use of verbatim and the brutal portrayal of violence. In the author’s work, violence manifests itself especially through medical and sexual discourse. They become part of a power dynamics between individuals, behind which in fact lies a desperate longing for recognition and acceptance. In this way, Balyko points the finger at the absence of high values in post-Soviet society and in post-Soviet Belarus at the beginning of 2000’s which appears especially in a disregard of human life. This research aims at exploring the theme of identity in Balyko’s work through the body, considered by many feminist studies one of the main sites for the construction of the self as well as the subject and object of violence. For this purpose, the plays Belyj angel s čërnymi kril’jami (Balyko. 2005. Belyj angel Ss černymi kryl’jami [A White Angel with Black Wings] ), about the social stigma of AIDS, and Gorjačaja točka (Balyko. 2006. Gorjačaja ttočka [Hotspot]). Foucaultian concept of biopower and biopolitics will be especially useful in the analysis.