Page 98 - Vinkler, Jonatan, Ana Beguš and Marcello Potocco. Eds. 2019. Ideology in the 20th Century: Studies of literary and social discourses and practices. Koper: University of Primorska Press
P. 98
Ideology in the 20th Century: studies of literary and social discourses and practices
dreams, secret or evil omens, miracles, Christian symbols etc.” (Harlam-
ov 2012).2
On the other hand, it should be pointed out that there is a motive for
searching for roots, a past that gives sense to the present, among others
in Tomšič’s story of the Alexandrian Women in the novel Grenko mor-
je (2003) and the collection of short stories Južni veter (2006), which up-
date this historical theme in the area of the Slovene Littoral, or the his-
tory of the Romani ethnic group in Lainšček’s novel Nedotakljivi (2007),
with his journey through time and the Balkans to present-day eastern
Slovenia.
In the period following the political changes in 1991, Slovenian au-
thors sought to capture mainly urban themes (Andrej Skubic (1967),
Goran Vojnović (1980), Borut Golob (1973), Jani Virk (1962), Dra-
98 go Jančar (1948) and others) while the countryside was attributed some
rather Cankarian features of a neglected and backward village of ‘blat-
ni dol’, often linking backwardness with the role of the Catholic Church
(e.g. Feri Lainšček: Ki jo je megla prinesla (1993), Borut Golob: Smreka
bukev lipa križ (2009)3). Lack of education and simplicity are also proba-
bly the roots of prejudices against the Romani (Lainšček’s Namesto koga
roža cveti):
Filip Petarni was at first iritated and above all confused. He couldn’t figure
out why she became involved with a boy from the Romani settlement, and
even more so, with a younger one. At the beginning he even asked her not
to be seen in the boy’s company, at least close to her home where everybody
could see her (Lainšček 1991, 140–141).4
A less unambiguous evaluation of the role of the Church in contem-
porary society, and especially of the rural one, can be found in the novel
Kristalni čas (1990) by Lojze Kovačič (1928–2004):
So we spoke only about the life in the countryside and about the things that
the peasant can obtain with his work, healthy logic, and common human
2 “[Pregelj] tradicionalnost, konzervativnost starosvetne vaške skupnosti obnavlja in
prenavlja s fantastičnimi elementi; preroškimi sanjami, skrivnostnimi ali zlosutnimi
znamenji, čudeži, krščansko simboliko itd.”
3 “Smreka bukev lipo križ (2009) Boruta Goloba … v slovensko literatus prinaša osvežu-
jočo satiro podeželskega, vaškega in na drugi strani malomeščanskega okolja” (Har-
lamov 2012).
4 “Filip Petarni je bil sprva le nejevoljen in pa predvsem zmeden. Ni in ni mu šlo v gla-
vo, čemu se je zapletla s fantom iz ciganskega naselja, ki je bil za povrh še mlajši. Naj-
prej jo je celo le prosil, naj se vsaj doma, tudi vsem na očeh, ne druži z njim.”
dreams, secret or evil omens, miracles, Christian symbols etc.” (Harlam-
ov 2012).2
On the other hand, it should be pointed out that there is a motive for
searching for roots, a past that gives sense to the present, among others
in Tomšič’s story of the Alexandrian Women in the novel Grenko mor-
je (2003) and the collection of short stories Južni veter (2006), which up-
date this historical theme in the area of the Slovene Littoral, or the his-
tory of the Romani ethnic group in Lainšček’s novel Nedotakljivi (2007),
with his journey through time and the Balkans to present-day eastern
Slovenia.
In the period following the political changes in 1991, Slovenian au-
thors sought to capture mainly urban themes (Andrej Skubic (1967),
Goran Vojnović (1980), Borut Golob (1973), Jani Virk (1962), Dra-
98 go Jančar (1948) and others) while the countryside was attributed some
rather Cankarian features of a neglected and backward village of ‘blat-
ni dol’, often linking backwardness with the role of the Catholic Church
(e.g. Feri Lainšček: Ki jo je megla prinesla (1993), Borut Golob: Smreka
bukev lipa križ (2009)3). Lack of education and simplicity are also proba-
bly the roots of prejudices against the Romani (Lainšček’s Namesto koga
roža cveti):
Filip Petarni was at first iritated and above all confused. He couldn’t figure
out why she became involved with a boy from the Romani settlement, and
even more so, with a younger one. At the beginning he even asked her not
to be seen in the boy’s company, at least close to her home where everybody
could see her (Lainšček 1991, 140–141).4
A less unambiguous evaluation of the role of the Church in contem-
porary society, and especially of the rural one, can be found in the novel
Kristalni čas (1990) by Lojze Kovačič (1928–2004):
So we spoke only about the life in the countryside and about the things that
the peasant can obtain with his work, healthy logic, and common human
2 “[Pregelj] tradicionalnost, konzervativnost starosvetne vaške skupnosti obnavlja in
prenavlja s fantastičnimi elementi; preroškimi sanjami, skrivnostnimi ali zlosutnimi
znamenji, čudeži, krščansko simboliko itd.”
3 “Smreka bukev lipo križ (2009) Boruta Goloba … v slovensko literatus prinaša osvežu-
jočo satiro podeželskega, vaškega in na drugi strani malomeščanskega okolja” (Har-
lamov 2012).
4 “Filip Petarni je bil sprva le nejevoljen in pa predvsem zmeden. Ni in ni mu šlo v gla-
vo, čemu se je zapletla s fantom iz ciganskega naselja, ki je bil za povrh še mlajši. Naj-
prej jo je celo le prosil, naj se vsaj doma, tudi vsem na očeh, ne druži z njim.”
