Izvorni znanstveni članak
https://doi.org/10.15291/sponde.4829
Miloš Crnjanski and the experience of the Mediterranean
Sanja Roić
; Sveučilište u Zagrebu
*
* Dopisni autor.
Sažetak
Miloš Crnjanski (1893–1977), born in the Pannonian region of Vojvodina, began his literary journey at 15 with the poem Destiny, which already foreshadowed themes of loss, fragmentation, and longing. Educated in classical literature, Crnjanski was influenced by Latin poets and would later weave classical motifs into his modernist works. His deep connection with the Adriatic Sea, particularly the Kvarner Bay and the multicultural city of Fiume (Rijeka), profoundly shaped his literary and personal identity. Despite early personal tragedies, including the deaths of close family members, he became a polyglot and a keen observer of cultural hybridity. These experiences culminated in his poetry collection The Lyrics of Ithaca (1919), a landmark of Serbian modernist literature. Crnjanski’s early poetic voice emerged amid the trauma of World War I, where he served as an soldier. He drew upon Futurism, Expressionism, and classical lyricism to process the horrors of war and loss. His poetry challenged national myths and liter-ary conventions, promoting a cosmopolitan and introspective worldview. The Lyrics of Ithaca reflected a modern Odysseus figure - disillusioned, wounded, and uprooted - who rejected patriotic idealism. Crnjanski’s sense of identity was fluid, resisting strict lin-guistic or national definitions, and he famously declared himself “his own ancestor”. Influenced by the Adriatic’s history of cultural confluence—from Illyr-ians and Romans to Venetians and Slavs - Crnjanski embraced multiculturalism and regional intercon-nectedness. His admiration for the Adriatic’s linguistic and historical richness informed his poetic experimentation, as seen in poems like “The Adriatic,” “Winds,” and “Anthem.” He developed a poetic philosophy known as Sumatraism, which transformed trauma into mystical, cosmological expression, blending European and Asian influences. This vision is evident in both his poetry and prose, especially in The Diary about Čarnojević, a fragmented novel reflecting war, exile, and psychological duality. Crnjanski’s travel writings, including Journey to Tuscany, linked his inland homeland with the Renaissance Mediterranean, further affirming his transnational aesthetic. He believed literature should transcend nationalism, and his writing sought to connect history, geography, and personal memory. Though criticized by conservative critics, younger readers embraced his modernist, emotionally raw voice. His literary references ranged from Dante and Petrarch to Chinese and Japanese poetry, exemplifying his global out-look. In his later years, Crnjanski revisited the Adri-atic coast and delivered his final public statement in Italian in 1967, emphasizing poetic internationalism and the enduring power of the past. Despite political misreadings of his wartime journalism, he remained a deeply humanist writer, shaped by the interplay of memory, history, and geography. His works navigate a symbolic cartography where places like Ithaca, Tus-cany, Corfu, and Fruška Gora become metaphors for survival and exile. Ultimately, his literature reveals a restless search for belonging, identity, and reconcilia-tion across cultures and time.
Ključne riječi
Miloš Crnjanski; Mediterranean; cultural hybridity; Sumatraism; poetic geography
Hrčak ID:
333837
URI
Datum izdavanja:
18.7.2025.
Posjeta: 738 *