‘HOMO BALCANICUS’ / ‘HOMO HEROICUS’ AS A STEREOTYPE OF LITERARY RECEPTION

Abstract

The article discusses peculiarities of representation of the “homo balcanicus” stereotype in anthropological and ethno-psychological studies (G. Geseman, J. Tsvich, V. Dvornikovich, M. Havatsi, K. Kazer), fictional texts and literary studies (P. Negosh, A. Cristie, I. Andrish, P. Dzhadzhich, Z. Karanovych, D. Kish, V. Goldsworthy, M. Pantich et al.). The image tends to be linked wit the “dark side” of the Balkan mentality. Literary discourse, presented in a broad chronological context, presents a combination of auto- and hetero-stereotypes, which are explained in the context of the historical existence of the ethnos, taking into account its specific socio-cultural features. Under this condition, the relevant “memory figures” retain the semantic substrate and contain synthesis of previous discourse, including ethno-folklore, primarily in terms of self / foreign opposition, while avoiding mythologizing and at the same time questioning the universality and/or locality of a certain tradition, and ultimately support the idea of ​​civilizational dialogue and opportunities for intercultural exchange and understanding. The cognitive scheme of stereotypes, based on the opposition of self/other, becomes especially noticeable in the context of globalization, gaining a relevant dimension in the collective discourse of “memory,” when the presence of the past within the present becomes not only an important topic of the literary canon, but also a crucial socio-cultural factor.