Review article

“Women’s Writing” and the NIN Literary Award

Aleksandra Popin ; The Academy of Applied Preschool Teaching and Health Studies, Kruševac
Violeta Janjatović ; State University of Novi Pazar

Abstract

Established in 1954, the NIN Literary Award is one of the most prestigious prizes awarded to novels written in the Serbian language. Despite its canonical status, over more than seven decades only seven women writers have received the award: Dubravka Ugrešić for Forsiranje romana reke (Forcing the River Novel, 1988), Svetlana Velmar Janković for Bezdno (The Abyss, 1995), Grozdana Olujić for Glasovi u vetru (Voices in the Wind, 2009), Gordana Ćirjanić for Ono što oduvek želiš (What You Have Always Wanted, 2010), Ivana Dimić for Arzamas (2017), Milena Marković for Deca (Children, 2021), and Danica Vukićević for Unutrašnje more (Inner Sea, 2023). Drawing on the theoretical and methodological premises of feminist literary criticism, particularly the concepts of écriture féminine and women’s writing, this paper analyses the narrative instances and the construction of female characters in these novels. Taking into account the broad chronological span of the corpus, as well as its poetic and thematic diversity, the study explores how the protagonists are positioned within this interpretative framework. Particular attention is devoted to the relationship between the representation of female characters and the broader socio-historical context, with the aim of determining the extent to which their literary construction is shaped by contemporary social transformations and the extent to which it reproduces patterns of patriarchal discourse and gender stereotypes. Although the corpus is relatively limited, the study seeks to contribute to ongoing discussions concerning the position of women writers within the Serbian, and more broadly Yugoslav, literary canon, as well as their literary and institutional recognition during the second half of the twentieth century and the first quarter of the twenty-first century. Rather than offering definitive conclusions, the paper proposes an analytical framework and directions for future, more comprehensive research into the relationship between the literary canon, gender representation, and literary awards.

Keywords

feminist literary theory; écriture feminine; Serbian/Yugoslav literary canon; female characters; NIN Literary Award

Hrčak ID:

349667

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/349667

Publication date:

23.7.2026.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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