Slovenska Literatura (Jun 2011)
: The Muse of Tatras with a Slavonic Lyre - questions about Šafárik’s (poetic) pioneering
Abstract
Šafárik´s collection of poems Tatranská Můza s lýrou slovanskou (The Muse of Tatras with a Slavonic lyre, Levoča, 1814) attracts a lot of attention in the literary-historical discourse – as a rule it is regarded as an important milestone in the development of Slovak poetry, or as the first manifestation of real modern Slovak poetry. On the other hand, it overshadows - not quite fairly - other authors´ literary works written at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. Recent interpretations and analyses of the period of Slovak literature in question shows the need to review some of the profiles, especially those which comment on its influence on steering domestic literary development. Although it is indisputable, some of Šafárik´s poems carry features of more personal, subjective or intimate poetic expression, it cannot be overlooked that he often combined it with other poetic strategies which are just as relevant sources of information when reconstructing general outlines of the Slovak literary development. Therefore when analysing and assessing (not only) Šafárik´s collection, it is necessary to take account of the complete list of contemporary literary principles, a possibility of foreign influence or a number of other potential sources of insipration, as well as the historical, social and cultural context of the overall contemporary literary production.
