The quest for identity has been addressed as a recurrent theme since the emergence of literature, which has always tended to answer the questions about the identity of a literary hero as well as about their origins and the identity of the collective. What is more, literature has tried to establish the uniqueness of a hero, which arises from the differences among characters. The complexity of the problem of identity is the pivotal theme in the novels of Feri Lainšček, who is one of the most prominent Slovenian writers. The purpose of my doctoral dissertation is to explore personal identity of the protagonists in relation to their regional /national identity. Moreover, the dissertation is aimed to be yet another contribution to the Slovenian literary history or in other words, it might serve as an insight into Lainšček's prolific and diverse works, which have not been systematically and thoroughly investigated so far. The dissertation comprises two parts. The first, being theory-based, explores various definitions/interpretations of identity, i.e. personal, regional or national, in the context of sociological, ethnological, anthropological and historical determinants. It begins with the term national identity, which is discussed in relation to Slovenian national identity in terms of art, literary and cultural movements, from the early 19th century Romanticism to present days. It is continued by introducing the notion of regional identity, which represents the means of demonstrating Lainšček's genius loci, the region of Prekmurje, which is outlined historically, geographically and ethnographically. The concluding section of the first part focuses on Lainšček's novels from 1980 to 2010 and their recognition by the public and the critics. The study is ended with a theoretical account of the relation between the question of identity and the literary character. A theoretical framework of part one is followed by part two, which is a systematic, contextualised literature review of Feri Lainšček's published works in the period from 1980 to 2010. In the focus of analysis are the following novels: Peronarji, Raza, Razpočnica, Grinta, Namesto koga roža cveti (Instead of Whom the Flower Blooms), Ki jo je megla prinesla, Astralni niz, Vankoštanc, Skarabej in vestalka, Petelinji zajtrk (Rooster's Breakfast), Trik z vrvjo, Ločil bom peno od valov, Muriša, Nedotakljivi, Ne 170 povej, kaj si sanjala. The crime novel Mož v pasijonki and the short prose narrative Černelč in Agasi are analysed in comparison with the two other novels: Astralni niz and Vankoštanc. In the interpretive-analytical part of the dissertation, I primarily concentrate on the novels and their protagonists, which I analyse sociologically, while the methodology applied is based on literary history and interpretation. The quest for personal identity, as a source of liberation and personal creativity, in relation to social factors, is systematically investigated in the study. It has been proven that the dynamic structure of the protagonists' identity in terms of spiritual and personal intelligence is perceived as life-long process, determined by personal conflicts and crises. The protagonists undergo the phases of being active, followed by the phases when they exert passive resistance. Furthermore, they are faced with different social roles, which they either accept, or decline, their decision depending on their gender, vocation, religious and political beliefs, moral values or lifestyles. Lainšček's pivotal characters, who are stigmatised and marginalised, either as a consequence of their background or misfortunate chain of events, fail to find their inner self in their life process of seeking identity, with the exception of three out of fifteen protagonists. The central part of the study involves research on the relation between the protagonist's personal identity and the identity of their geographical milieu. The outcomes of the systematic study and chronological overview of the setting of the stories have shown that in ten out of fifteen analysed novels, Prekmurje is involved either explicitly or implicitly. Prekmurje as part of the Pannonian plain provides flesh to the people's perception of the world. Archaic and primal are two adjectives defining their mentality, which enables Lainšček to keep in touch with an archaic man and consequently gain access to archetypical stories in which reside the realm of mystical, irrational and mythological forces. Seeking their inner self in relation to their geographical milieu, the main characters are driven by intuition in the form of dreams and symbols. Some characters eventually go insane. Although one might consider Feri Lainšček decidedly a novelist of Prekmurje, however, it is still disputable. Apart from regional identity, which is discussed in Lainšček's novels, national identity is explicitly highlighted only in the novel Skarabej in vestalka and ethnical identity in Namesto koga roža cveti and Nedotakljivi. Another aspect in the interpretive-analytical part is of crucial importance, namely the narrative framework in Lainšček's novels, which has been explored by applying methods based on literary history and literary analysis and by theory-base insights. The study also takes into consideration the following aspects: descriptive style, setting, first/second/third person /unreliable narrator, characterisation, metacognitive elements, motifs, plot, style and evaluation process. The methods applied are based on interpretation and the analysis of the style and form. In conclusion, Feri Lainšček is due to his prolific and diverse literary works, one of the most renowned Slovenian authors in contemporary modernist fiction.
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