From Spectre to Phantom: Debates on Ivo Andrić in the Post-Yugoslav Period – a Critical Reassessment

Abstract

Ivo Andrić is the only Yugoslav recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature, and his place in the (Serbian) literary canon has long been unquestioned. His work thus continually provides a basis for igniting various – neither only literary, nor exclusively cultural – conflicts, as well as for critical and hermeneutic examination from diverse (theoretical) perspectives. Polemics about Andrić’s life and work intensified particularly after his death, especially in the period following the dissolution of the SFRY. Andrić’s prose largely revolves around the themes of Islam, Muslims, and the Ottoman heritage, with his narratives being primarily set in Bosnia under Ottoman rule. Interpretations of the representation of Muslims and Ottomans in his works, as well as accusations of the author’s Islamophobia, orientalism, and Eurocentrism, have been the focal points of these “conflicts of interpretation”. The most recent such debate was sparked by Zoran Milutinović’s book, The Battle for the Past: Ivo Andrić and Bosniak Nationalism (2018), which itself represents a response to a certain stream of Bosniak reception of this author. Critical reviews of Milutinović’s book were initially responded to by Davor Beganović and Enver Kazaz, followed by Damir Šabotić, highlighting certain methodological shortcomings in the presented arguments; Milutinović replied to each of these articles. Nenad Veličković later joined the discussion, summarizing previously stated views and asserting that, besides Bosniak, there also exists a Serbian nationalist discourse on Andrić, to which Milutinović responded with the book The Phantom of the Library: Is there a Serbian Nationalist Discourse on Ivo Andrić? (2022). The aim of this paper is to – with a review of relevant literature – critically present, summarize, and establish the theoretical coherence and foundation of the basic positions of the participants in this debate, which was mostly conducted with regard to the interpretation and political-ideological (mis)use of Andrić’s works.