Original scientific paper
Ivo Pilar and Progressivism
Stjepan Matković
; Hrvatski institut za povijest, Zagreb
Abstract
In the paper the author deals with an earlier period of Pilar’s career in
order to show the multifarious character of his life’s journey which cannot be judged from a single perspective as was the case in numerous works to date. In the first part of the paper the author dwells on Pilar’s family life and intellectual evolution in the course of his studies in Vienna, where he joined a group of young people advocating modernism and mostly inclined toward a progressive ideology. Although until his departure for Bosnia and Herzegovina he only marginally dealt with political issues, it is evident that at that time Pilar had a critical view of the Croatian politic elite, convinced that due to its conservatism it did not understand contemporary societal problems. In that sense he discarded the political doctrine of the Party of Right as fruitless nationalism. On the basis of some rarely used and newly discovered documents it has become evident that Pilar, along with some other followers of the Modernist movement, continued to deliberate in the spirit of Progressivism during his stay in Sarajevo. The turning point was marked by the deep changes that took place on Croatia’s political scene with the establishment of the Croatian Popular Progressive Party, which for tactical reasons that were linked to cooperation with Serbian politicians, neglected the discourse on Bosnia and Herzegovina, something that was unacceptable to Pilar because in that way support was given to Serbian nationalism. The concluding part of the article contains original contributions.
Keywords
Hrčak ID:
123199
URI
Publication date:
1.1.2014.
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