The paper analyses the thematisation of nation, homeland and state in contemporary Slovene poetry. In the past, Slovenes, out of a sense of defensive nationalism, have identified with language and literature, but my research has uncovered the demythified face of the nation and an ambivalent attitude somewhere between distance and concern. Irony, sarcasm, the grotesque and humour are not an expression of indifference or national betrayal, but rather an emotionally committed protest against feelings of lack of freedom, fear and humiliation, which are the result of historical disabilities. Although poets are aware of global relations based on power, they speak in favour of sovereignty as the ethical stance of the creative individual.
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