This master's thesis discusses the status of poet dr. France Prešeren in the period between 1945 and 1991 in socialist Yugoslavia; therefore, it discusses, in broader sense, a political history of a cultural problem. While existing research has already defined the function of the national poet for the 19th-century nationalisms, the existence of this title in the period after the First and particularly the Second World War remained quite neglected. The same thing can be said about the research made on the role of classical poets in the contexts of socialist regimes. The case of Prešeren is used to demonstrate his cult-like status in the Yugoslav context and is divided into four phases. In the period from the end of the Second World War to the year 1952, Prešeren was perceived as a heroic forefather of the partisan movement and as a proto-communist revolutionary. The state appropriated his image and changed him into an sacrosanct icon and a symbol of the new state's freedom-loving tendencies. During the second phase between 1953 and 1964 the poet's motivational potential somewhat faded, so he was given the part of a guide and a spiritual support during the turbulent times. By the time of the third phase, which lasted between 1965 and 1980, Prešeren's role in public life has been pushed further into background. On the other hand, however, the literary profession has achieved a turning point: the focus was brought from Prešeren's biography, which had been the main subject of research to date, back to his poems. The final phase covers the remaining period of the state's existence and marks the collapse of the poet's image as formed and propagated by the state. Instead of this, the deeper meaning of the poet was constantly brought up in new contexts, which is why he could enter the new, independent state as a national icon – yet again. All of these phases are also examined on the local case study of Kranj, one of the places where the Prešeren cult was best developed. The conduct of opening the Prešeren museum and memorial park, dedication of his monuments, the naming of the institutions, and many other projects, including unfinished ones, are all explored in detail.
|