An Outline Of Balkan Literature

Timetable

Friday, 10:00-11:30 (Central European Time), classes start 4th March;

Module aim (aims)

A course focuses on the most important and representative literary works and authors of countries
in the Balkans. The course presents Balkan literatures in chronological and typological approach
on the basic level. Moreover, the course deals with literary connections between Balkan cultures
and Eastern or Western cultural circles. Course aims to:
- define and describe basic phenomena and literary traditions of Balkan cultures
- characterize main cultural contexts of Balkan literatures on the basic level
- show specificity of historical-literary process and models of periodization related to
literature of countries in the Balkans
- connect specific literary phenomena of countries in the Balkans with analogous
phenomena in other European literatures
- analyze, interpret and evaluate independently literary works of countries in the Balkans
- introduce basic notions and terminology in the field of theory of literature and history of
literature of countries in the Balkans

Pre-requisites in terms of knowledge, skills and social competences (where relevant)

Keen interest in literature, history and the Balkans.
Duration: 15 weeks

Syllabus

Week 1: The Balkans (etymology of the term, geographical/political/historical/cultural definitions,
main characteristics of the region)
Week 2: Basic traditions of Balkan literatures (Ancient, Christian, Roman Latin, Byzantine,
Muslim/Ottoman traditions)
Week 3: Foundations of South Slavonic literatures (the mission of Sts. Constantine-Cyril and
Methodius, continuation of Cyrillo-Methodian tradition in the Balkans)
Week 4: Medieval Orthodox literature in the Balkans / part I: Old Bulgarian Literature
Week 5: Medieval Orthodox literature in the Balkans / part II: Old Serbian Literature
Week 6: Glagolitic tradition in the Balkans
Week 7: Renaissance literature in the Balkans (15th-16th-century Croatian literature)
Week 8: Baroque literature in the Balkans (17th-century Croatian literature)
Week 9: Enlightenment literature in the Balkans (the 18th century)
Week 10: Literature during the National Revival in the Balkans
Week 11: Albanian literature (literary development, periodization, main writers, national myths)
Week 12: Romanian literature (literary development, periodization, main writers, national myths)
Week 13: The image of Bosnia in Ivo Andrić’s works
Week 14: The Balkan literary “classics” from the 20th centuries (Miloš Crnjanski, Miroslav
Krleža, Emilyan Stanev, Ismail Kadare)
Week 15: Postmodern tendencies in contemporary literature of the Balkan countries

Reading list

Ch. Moser, A History of Bulgarian Literature 865–1944, the Hague–Paris 1972.
A.Barac, A History of Yugoslav Literature, trans. P. Mijušković, Ann Arbour 1976.
G. Calinescu, L. Levitchi, History of Romanian Literature, Paris 1988.
K. Bihiku, A History of Albanian Literature, Tirana 1980.
The Canon of Croatian Poetry 1450–2000. Over 200 Croatian Poems with Facing English
Translation, eds. and trans. I. Šoljan, V. Šoljan, Lewiston–Lampeter 2015.
K. Petkov, The Voices of Medieval Bulgaria, Seventh–Fifteenth Century. The Records of a Bygone
Culture, Leiden–Boston 2008.
An Anthology of Medieval Serbian Literature in English, eds. M. Matejić, D. Milivojević,
Columbus 1978.
L. Boia, History and Myth in Romanian Consciousness, trans. J. Brown, Budapest 2001.
S. Schwandner-Sievers, B.J. Fischer, Albanian Identities: Myth and History, London 2002.
An Anthology of Serbian Literature, eds. V. Mihailovich, B. Mikasinovich, Bloomington 2007.
An Anthology of Croatian Literature, ed. H. Cooper, Bloomington 2011.
Documents and Materials on the History of the Bulgarian People, eds. M. Voynov, L. Panayotov,
Sofia 1969.
An Anthology of Bulgarian Literature, eds. I. Mladenov, H. Cooper, Bloomington 2007.
R. Elsie, Classical Albanian Literature. A Reader, London 2015.
Of Gentles Wolves. An Anthology of Romanian Poetry, ed. and trans. M. Woodside, Houston
2011.
Testament: Anthology of Romanian Verse, eds. D. Ionita et all., Bucharest 2012.
Macedonia: Documents and Materials, eds. V. Bozhinov, L. Panayatov, Sofia 1978.
S. Trifu, D. Ciocoi-Pop, Romanian Poems. A Bilingual Anthology of Romanian Poetry, Cluj 1972.