THE ASPECTS OF TRAGIC IN THE “GENIUS CYCLE” IN THE LEGENDS BY KRLEŽA

Abstract

A group of plays by Miroslav Krleža, forming a part of the Legends collection, which are referred
to as ‘the genius cycle’ were analysed with regard to supra-genre understanding of the quality of tragic, with special emphasis on the specific relation of tragedy towards myth, which presupposes a certain level of its reflection. The work relies on the theoretical analyses which place the problem of the subject, closely connected to the instance of a character, in the center of contemporary tragedy. Examples of the more or less unsuccessful visionaries reflect the inherent flaw of their messianic undertakings, which consists of an attempt to humanize the mankind. With this the pessimistic anthropological vision of a man as an ambivalent creature, torn between his own animality and his ideal projection, which is characteristic for Krleža, has been achieved.