Croatian-slavic literary relations in the period of Croatian Moderna

Abstract

The end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, known in Croatian literary history as the period of Croatin Moderna (Hrvatska Modema, further HM, 1895 —1914), presents a stylistically heterogeneous period in which literary creation turns in a wide range from realistic, naturalistic and impressionistic to modest beginnings of symbolistic and futurist expression. Such a mixture of styles is present also in other literatures of the period, but seldom as a part of their literary programs, as was the case with Croatia where, under the device of »liberty of creation«, all European movements, styles and impulses were welcome all in order to compensate for the retardation and to get abreast with Europe. In this process the contacts with Slavic countries and their literatures played an important part because of the priority given to them by the representatives of all the groups and generations of the period. The research of these contacts leads to the following conclusions: (A) At the turn of the century, direct contacts with various Slavic countries were more vivid than ever and the knowledge of Slavic languages and literatures was more complete than in the previous periods. In the discussion of this question the foollowing topics are discussed separately: (1) (a) relations with other South-Slavic literatures, (b) relations with West-Slavic literatures, (c) relations with East-Slavic literatures; (2) literary impulses as result of the above mentioned relations; (3) the knowledge of, and the interest for, Croatian literature in the three groups of Slavic countries (cf. la, b, c). (B) As result of these investigations are to be pointed out: (1) a doubtless gradual approach to, and interaction of, Croatian and other South-Slavic literatures, especially Slovene and Serbian; (2) a more intimate and deeper knowledge of West-Slavic literatures, especially of Czech in the first and Polish in the second stage of HM, as well as the interest shown in respective countries for Croatian literature. Literary impulses coming from West-Slavic literatures are anyhow rather modest in comparison to vivid contacts; this is especially true of Czech literature, which is primarily important as a mediator between Croatian literature and other Slavic and non-Slavic literatures, while Polish literature also emitted some fruitful impulses (Przyb.yszewski, Reymont); (3) relations with East-Slavic literatures, reduced practically to Russian, were much weaker than with West-Slavic literatures and almost exclusively one-sided. Though the knowledge of Russian literature was also incomplete (symbolism practically .unknown), the influence of some writers (Tolstoy, Gorki) can be traced in Croatian literary production of the period.