The Use of Emotions: Glimpses from the Bulgarian Texts, 18th-mid-19th century

This paper does not aim at analyzing the Bulgarian literary production of the 18th and 19th centuries in its entirety. Its goal is rather to examine an essential aspect of the activity of Bulgarian intellectuals, which has remained largely overlooked in Bulgarian historiography. The study presents the results of an empirical research

study on the early Bulgarian textbooks and periodicals until mid-19th century. Our attention is focused on the principal moments in the creation of the Bulgarian national narrative with a view of laying an accent on the function of the emotions in the strategy of the texts. Special attention is paid to the contribution of the authors who have played a leading role in the evolution of the historical thought of Bulgarians and in the complex process of the creation of the “imagined community”.