Serbian literature
Serbian literature, however, continued uninterrupted in Serbian-inhabited lands under European rule and saw a revival with Baroque works published in the 18th century in what is today Vojvodina.
The ritual genres were hagiographies, homiletics and hymnography, known in Slavic as žitije (vita), pohvala (eulogy), službe (church services), effectively meaning prose, rhetoric, and poetry.
[2] While there were several works of poetry written in Serbian literature in the Middle Ages, there are only a few dramas; published novels were mostly adaptations and translations.
[5] Medieval literature has also influenced a number of modern poets, such as Desanka Maksimović, Miodrag Pavlović, Vasko Popa and Matija Bećković.
Historic events, such as the Battle of Kosovo in the 14th century, play a major role in the development of Serbian epic poetry.
The special cycles are dedicated to Serbian legendary hero, Marko Kraljević, then about hajduks (infantry) and uskoks (soldiers), and the liberation of Serbia in the 19th century.
Some of the best known folk ballads are The Death of the Mother of the Jugović Family and The Mourning Song of the Noble Wife of the Asan Aga (1646), translated into European languages by Goethe, Walter Scott, Pushkin and Mérimée.
[12] A notable Baroque writer from this period is Gavril Stefanović Venclović, who wrote numerous works in several genres and started an early reform of the language.
[5] Other important authors of the time include: Dimitrije Ljubavić, Đorđe Branković, Andrija Zmajević, Vasilije III Petrović-Njegoš, Mojsije Putnik, Pavle Julinac, Marko Jelisejić, Joakim Vujić, Luka Milovanov Georgijević, Nikanor Grujić, Jovan Subotić, Jovan Rajić, Zaharije Orfelin, Simeon Piščević, Gerasim Zelić and others.
A gymnasium (school) in modern-day Sremski Karlovci was a center of culture for several years in the 18th century headed by Emanuel Kozačinski who wrote a notable Baroque work Traedokomedija in 1734.
The Serbian Enlightenment did not produce a work of note on a European scale for obvious political, cultural and religious reasons, though it spanned every artistic field.
[27] The main themes of realists were the country's social groups and classes, the differences between the urban and rural population and exploration of various types of characters.
Notable realistic authors include Janko Veselinović, Laza Lazarević, Milovan Glišić, Stevan Sremac, Radoje Domanović, Svetolik Ranković,[31] Veljko M. Milićević and Borisav Stanković with his major works, Nečista krv (Impure Blood) and Koštana (lit.
Based in the world of the town of Vranje, this place of merchants and landowners was on its way out together with the Turks retreating from the region, after the long struggle for Old Serbia from 1903 to 1911 and the Balkan Wars.
Its influences came from leading literature movements in Europe, particularly that of symbolism and the psychological novel, but more through mood and aesthetic components rather than of literary craftsmanship.
[36] According to literary historian Petar Milošević, Serbian Moderna has produced several masterful poems, chiefly authored by Vladislav Petković Dis, Jovan Dučić, Milan Rakić, Sima Pandurović and the first half of Milutin Bojić's Ode to a Blue Sea Tomb.
[43] The most well known authors are: Ivo Andrić (he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1961),[44] Miloš Crnjanski,[44] Meša Selimović, Vladan Desnica, Oskar Davičo,[43] Borislav Pekić, Branko Miljković, Danilo Kiš, Milorad Pavić, David Albahari, Miodrag Bulatović,[44] Radomir Konstantinović,[44] Mihailo Lalić,[44] Branko Ćopić,[44] Igor Marojević, Miroslav Josić Višnjić and Dobrica Ćosić,[44] among others.
His works like Lament Over Belgrade, Migrations, A novel of London are considered to be the crowning achievements of the Serbian XX century literature.
[43] The most beloved face of Serbian literature was Desanka Maksimović, who for seven decades remained "the leading lady of Yugoslav poetry".
Some of the notable authors include: Antonije Isaković, Mihailo Lalić, Meša Selimović, Milovan Đilas, Branko Ćopić and Dobrica Ćosić.
Milorad Pavić, Borislav Pekić, Danilo Kiš, Slobodan Selenić, Svetislav Basara, Boško Petrović (writer), Dragan Velikić and Dobrica Ćosić wrote these works.
[52] After the death of Josip Broz Tito and the start of a crisis in Yugoslavia, the island of Goli Otok became a new subject in literature.
[50] Milorad Pavić is one of the most widely acclaimed Serbian authors, most notably for his Dictionary of the Khazars (Хазарски речник / Hazarski rečnik), which has been translated into 38 languages.
Some of the most notable authors include Zoran Živković, Vladimir Arsenijević, Vladislav Bajac, Igor Marojević and Svetislav Basara.
[57] Authors writing in Serbian who have won the European Union Prize for Literature include Jelena Lengold, Uglješa Šajtinac, Darko Tuševljaković,[58] Tanja Stupar-Trifunović[59] and Lana Bastašić.
