Ivan Goran Kovačić's poetry for children

Abstract

From the very beginning of his literary career I. G. Kovačić wrote poetry addressed to children. Marked as a whole by themes pertaining to childhood, parts of his poetic output, even within the most integral collection Ognji i rože (Fires and Roses), feature verses specifically addressed to children. He wrote most of his children's poetry while working for the Croatian Daily from 1936-1939. Although written on order, the cycle of poems entitled Za našu djecu (For our children) contains a number of successful texts. "The Telephone Conversation with the Zoo" is a unique poem of the period between the First and the Second World War. Kovačić wrote in standard Croatian and in the "kajkavian" dialect. He used the dialect of his home region (which during his first phase does not possess an authentic native place value) in dealing with the themes of childhood as well as with social motifs. With a cycle of poems about baron Vrtivep, the nobleman from Turopolje, Kovacid, inspired by stories about barun Munchausen, addressed his children readership. His death at the hands of the Chetniks prevented the poet from completing his work. However, although his work is unfinished, the poems addressed to children that he left behind open up a new page in Croatian literature for children. This segment of the work of Ivan Goran Kovacic with its playfulness, joy and beauty continue to appeal to the youngest reading public and represent a link on the chronological axis of Croatian poetry for children.