Hearth fire (novel)

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Book cover of the German edition (1943)

Hearth fire ( Croatian original title : Ognjište: Roman iz ličkog seljačkog života , German: The hearth  : A novel from the rural life of Lika ) is a Croatian farmer's novel by Mile Budak that was first published in 1938 .

The novel is a model of realistic village narration ; a genre which produced the best achievements for Croatian and Serbian literature (e.g. by the authors Josip Kozarac , Dinko Šimunović , Slavko Kolar and Laza Lazarević , Janko Veselinović , Borisav Stanković ). The contemporary successful novel in its German edition, the Slavist Reinhold Trautmann counted among the "great Slavic novels". For the literary critic Josef Laßl , the novel was just as important a work as the stories by the Nobel Prize laureate Ivo Andrić .

The subject of the novel is the zadrugas that used in the Slavs common form of extended family whose structure through three generations to each other the example of two versippten large families is told. In the work of over 900 pages, Budak draws a very interesting cultural and historical picture of the Zadruga that no longer exists today . He describes the landscape as well as the old folk life and the folk customs of the Lika and increases "the life of his Lika farmers to an epic symbol of human fighting on earth."

Creation and publication

First page of the handwritten manuscript

Mile Budak wrote the novel while in exile in Italy , to which he had to take refuge due to his political activities. He started the recordings on May 8th and finished them on June 19, 1937 in the Hotel Montestella in Salerno . The working title was Ka 'crna zemlja (Like the black earth) and refers to the character trait of Lukan , one of the main characters in the novel. The novel was later given the original title Ognjište . Budak himself said of the characters and the title of his novel:

“I was in Sveti Rok in 1928 with Ivka and the children. I heard from her [Anera] and spoke to Uncle Lukan. I wanted to express the old and original connection between these people and their country, the values ​​and agreements that result from this connection. "Like the black earth" ... this sentence is in their eyes: friendliness, patience, diligence, loyalty, conscience, duty, achievement. All this, "like the black earth" ... Lukan, Anera, Zekan, they are all "like the black earth". "

After Budak's return from exile to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1938, the novel was published in the same year as the Croatian first edition by the publishing house of the most important Croatian cultural association Matica hrvatska .

After various administrative and technical obstacles (German translation, Propaganda Ministry , Reich Chamber of Culture , publishing rights, paper procurement office, foreign currency office, printing works, etc.) had been overcome, the novel was published in German translation with the title Herdfeuer by Karl H. Bischoff Verlag in the war year 1943 . The translation from Croatian was done by Dr. Franz Hille , who was appointed lecturer for German-Croatian cultural relations at the Croatian universities in October 1941. The German first edition appeared on April 29, 1943 and, despite paper rationing , had a high circulation of 20,050 copies at the time.

The response to the novel in Germany was very positive. The publisher's owner Karl Heinrich Bischoff wrote in his letter of September 17, 1943 to the Croatian writer Antun Bonifačić :

"[...] that the votes on this novel are extremely favorable in Germany. This concerns not only the statements of the press, which dealt with the work of Sr. Excellency with great willingness, but above all it concerns the statements of opinion of private readers, the German book trade etc. Almost all voices are enthusiastic and count this work as one the most beautiful examples of real European literature. "

After 1945, the novel was no longer allowed to be published in communist Yugoslavia . In 1966, an edition of Croats in the United States was issued.

In 1990, when Croatia's aspirations for independence were already in full swing, a three-volume reprint of the novel was published by the publishing house of the Matica Hrvatska cultural association .

After Croatia's independence, the novel was published as a two-volume edition in 1995, again by Matica hrvatska in the Stoljeća hrvatske književnosti series (The Century of Croatian Literature). This edition also contains the curriculum vitae, bibliography, editions and bibliography of the author Mile Budak, facsimiles and much more.

content

In a village in the Lika, during and after the First World War :

The Lika is the border area of ​​Croatia, a poor, karst, mountainous area where the farmers laboriously eke out their lives in the sweat of their brow. Even the rich among them live in houses with tiny rooms, right next to the cattle, without the slightest hygienic comfort. This simple, almost primitive way of life as shepherds and farmers corresponds to an absolute straightforwardness in all moral questions, an old-fathers- patriarchal system and a restriction of the interest to the farm and hearth. You take a wife to find a capable worker and you have children because the “hearth fire” must not go out: the most important concern of every family.

The main character of the book is Anera, a courageous and beautiful woman that is very unusual for the landscape there. Their changing connection with two neighboring families in the village is the reason for the dramatic event.

One family is run unanimously by the two brothers Zekan and Lukan . Lukan in particular comes to the fore in the course of the plot . It is said of him: “Lukan is like the black earth! You trample her, plow and dig her up, dirty her, and she is always the same good, patient, silent mother earth [...] She endures everything patiently - until she opens her throat. But then it devours wood and stone and cattle and people [...] "

The other family, living in the community of property of the Zadruga as usual there , is led by Blažić. The oldest of his numerous children is Mića, his second son Joso. Mića has loved Anera since childhood and wants to marry her. Blažić, who “has the devil in him”, is secretly gripped by a passion for Anera. He hopes to make her compliant. As a father-in-law, he is denied that, so he uses all means to resist marriage. When Mića secretly leads Anera into her parents' house and connects with her, Blažić sends his son and daughter-in-law out of the house, a monstrous act for Lika. The two have to build a small hut and laboriously earn a living. Joso secretly supports her to the best of his ability.

The men must go to war. Mića does not return. For a long time Anera does not want to admit his death and hopes for his return for years. Lukan loses his whole family through numerous accidents. All he has left is a baby, his grandson, the only one, around his family, around the hearth fire. Anera, who had found a friendly welcome in Lukan's family since their marriage and often worked there as a day laborer , takes pity on his great need, runs the household for him and brings up the little grandson with her own two sons. The decision to leave her beloved hut, where she was happy with Mića, is all the easier for her now that after a nightly visit Blažić has perceived Blažić's unhappy passion with horror and is alone in the hut too unprotected against his attacks. Joso, who could protect her, doesn't want to incite her against her own father. So she is silent.

Lukan and Anera defy all gossip that arises from living together. But then the little grandson dies of an epidemic. Lukan collapsed completely. After heavy internal struggles, Anera, who in the meantime had to be convinced of Mića's death, decides to become a companion to Lukan and to give birth to the children he needs to keep his hearth from going out. So she is safe from Blažić. Your love for Mića is unaffected. Lukan gratefully accepts. He sees in Anera a sisterly, venerable woman who harmonizes wonderfully with him. The official marriage is temporarily denied to the two, as Mića's death has not yet been officially certified. Blažić is furious.

Anera has already given birth to two children to Lukan. New returnees from Russia have been announced. Blažić spreads the nonsensical rumor that Mića himself was with the returnees. Against her better judgment, Anera is seized with panic. In her confusion she goes back to the hut while Lukan awaits the returnees in the next town. On his return he finds Anera's body. He realizes that Blažić is her killer. The final argument between the two so different men is inevitable. Lukan, like "the black earth" so patiently, takes on the retaliation and kills Blažić, thus anticipating his murderous intentions.

Dramatization, planned filming and further translation

As early as 1938, the novel was dramatized by Tito Strozzi (1892–1970) and Vojmil Rabadan (1909–1988). In 1942 Antun Dobronić (1878–1955) did the setting , as a mystery in two acts with prelude and interlude.

Anera and Blažić (performance in Sofia, Bulgaria)

In the dramatization of the head stage director at the Croatian state theater Vojmil Rabadan, the stage work was performed in Zagreb , Sarajevo , Osijek , Sofia , Prague and Vienna . The premiere at the Deutsches Volkstheater in Vienna took place on March 11, 1943 (translator: Ivan von Alpi-Rauch , adaptation and direction: Otto Burger, set design: Gustav Manker ). The main roles were played by Gert Fröbe (Joso), Willy Rösner (Blažic), Dorothea Neff (Manda), Inge Konradi (Baruša) and Hans Frank (Lukan). After the war, it was only performed again at the Croatian National Theater on April 12, 1991, shortly before Croatia's independence .

Written correspondence with the Karl H. Bischoff Verlag shows that Tobis Filmkunst and Terra Film in 1943 and UFA Filmkunst considered the film adaptation of the novel in 1944 . However, the film was no longer made due to the war.

In 1944 the novel was also published in Finnish .

Post-history

A total of 121 works by Mile Budaks , published in 213 publications and in 9 languages, including a. have been translated into Bulgarian , French , German, Slovak , Spanish and Italian , the novel Herdfeuer is his most important work.

Trivia

  • Only in the last sentence does the village reveal itself as the birthplace of Mile Budak, Sveti Rok :

"The rays of the moon shone on the Church of St. Rochus [Croatian: Sveti Rok], whose tower loomed strangely and like a tireless guard, a protector of our peaceful, starving and indestructible eternal flock."

  • Numerous figures and text passages refer to older stories by Mile Budak in which they also appear, e.g. B .:
    • the brothers Dujmina and Jadre (p. 23), from grandfather Dujmina (original title: Pod gorom , 1930)
    • the wolf šeponja (p. 53, 58), from The three-legged wolf (original title: Vuk šeponja , 1933)
    • the village elder Mijatina (p. 197, 202, 248), from whom does Velebit belong (original title: Čiji je Velebit , 1933)
    • Lukan and the rivers Opsenica and Ojevac (p. 45), from Our dear Opsenica
  • The novel reflected the rural life of Croatia and its language in such a way that it should serve as the main source for the preparation of an official Croatian dictionary ( Rječnik hrvatskoga jezika ).
  • The political conditions in Croatia at the time the novel was written are reflected by a symbolism . His main character Anera (symbol for Croatia) is violated by her father-in-law Blažić (symbol for the Serbian oppressors of Croatia), killed and avenged by her husband Lukan (symbol of the Croatian struggle for freedom) .

Expenses (selection)

  • Ognjište. Roman iz ličkog seljačkog života. 4 vols. Matica hrvatska , Zagreb 1938.
  • Hearth fire. Karl H. Bischoff Verlag, Berlin / Vienna / Leipzig 1943.
  • Omilla tulilla . 2 vols. Suomen kirja, Helsinki 1944 (translator Juhani Hollo).
  • Ognjište. Roman iz ličkog seljačkog života. 4 vols. Hrvatske štamparije, Chicago 1966.
  • Ognjište. Roman iz ličkog seljačkog života. 3 vols. Nakladni zavod Matice hrvatske, Zagreb 1990.
  • Ognjište. Roman iz ličkog seljačkog života. 2 vols. Matica hrvatska, Zagreb 1995.

There is also a splendid edition , made by hand by the spokesman for the Leipzig bookbinding trade of the 1940s to 1960s, Walter Veit . This unique representative equipped with a parchment - cover with gold plating and color embossing , all-round gold section and slipcase . In a flyleaf is national emblem of the Independent State of Croatia impressed. Master bookbinder Veit was instrumental in the design of representative objects such as the Golden Book of the City of Leipzig (1933–1943), a cassette as a gift from the Reichsmesse City Leipzig for the Richard Wagner Year to the " Führer " (1938) and the key from Georgi Dimitroff - Museum (1964) involved.

literature

  • Ante Petravić: Budakov roman "Ognjište" . In: Nova doba . Vol. 23. No. 300 , 1938, pp. 9-10 .
  • Boško Novaković: Roman ličkog sela . In: Srpski književni glasnik . No. 56 , 1939, pp. 298-300 (Serbian).
  • Anton Hiersemann (ed.): The novelist. The foreign novels and short stories of the present . tape XII . Stuttgart 1961, p. 410-411 .
  • Ivo Frangeš: History of Croatian Literature. From the beginning to the present . Böhlau Verlag, Vienna / Cologne / Weimar 1995, ISBN 3-412-08995-8 , pp. 349-357 et al. 629 ff .
  • Walter Jens (ed.): Kindlers new literature lexicon . tape 3 bp-ck. Kindler, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-463-43200-5 , pp. 305 ff .

Web links

Wikiquote: Ognjište (hearth fire)  - Quotes (Croatian)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Reinhard Lauer : Serbo-Croatian authors in German translation . tape 1  : Chronological catalog. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, 1995, ISBN 978-3-447-03592-7 , p. XXXVIII .
  2. ↑ Reinhold Trautmann: The Slavic Peoples and Languages: An Introduction to Slavic Studies . Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 1947, p. 62 ( limited preview in Google Book search).
  3. ^ Josef Laßl: Poetry and Society. Essays on the sociology of literature . Rudolf Trauner Verlag, 1966, p. 43 .
  4. ^ Kindler's new literary lexicon . Ed. Walter Jens. Vol. 3 Bp - Ck. Kindler, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-463-43200-5 , p. 305.
  5. ↑ Walter Jens (Ed.): Kindlers new literature lexicon . tape 3 bp - Ck. Kindler, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-463-43200-5 , pp. 306 .
  6. ^ Oskar Maurus Fontana: The great world theater. Theatrical reviews 1909–1976 . Amalthea Verlag, Vienna 1976, p. 293 .
  7. ^ First and last page of the handwritten manuscript.
  8. ^ Stipe Tomičić: Jedan sat s pscem "Ognjišta" . One hour with the author of “Herdfeuer”. In: Hrvatski Narod . No. 1067 . Zagreb June 25, 1944.
  9. ↑ Frank-Rutger Hausmann : "Dense, poet, don't meet!": The European writers' association in Weimar 1941–1948 . Vittorio Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main 2004, footnote no.358, p. 311 f .
  10. ^ Hrvoje Matković: Povijest Nezavisne Države Hrvatske . Pavičić Publishing House, Zagreb 1994, p. 128 .
  11. ^ Murray G. Hall: The Paul Zsolnay publishing house. From the foundation to the return from exile . Max Niemeyer Verlag , Tübingen 1994, p. 707 .
  12. ↑ Frank-Rutger Hausmann : "Dense, poet, don't meet!": The European writers' association in Weimar 1941–1948 . Vittorio Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main 2004, p. 313 , footnote no. 365 .
  13. ↑ Summary based on Brigitte Prorini-Hagen (graduate librarian), Stuttgart. In: Der Romanführer: The foreign novels and short stories of the present. Volume XII. Anton Hiersemann , Stuttgart 1961, pp. 410-411.
  14. ^ Operons: stage works with music. Catalog of works by Antun Dobronić. Antun Dobronić. In: operone.de. Retrieved January 15, 2015 .
  15. ↑ a b Hrvatsko-Bošnjački Savez: Životopis Mile Budak. Hrvatsko-Bošnjački Savez: Životopis Mile Budak. In: domovina.110mb.com. Archived from the original on January 6, 2010 ; accessed on January 15, 2015 .
  16. ^ Paulus Manker : Search for traces: The theater man Gustav Manker 1919–1988. 2nd Edition. Amalthea Signum Verlag , Vienna 2010, ISBN 978-3-85002-738-0 , p. 196.
  17. ↑ Website of the Croatian National Theater with information and photos. (No longer available online.) Formerly in the original ; Retrieved September 27, 2013 .  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.@1@ 2Template: Dead Link / www.hnk.hr  
  18. ↑ Frank-Rutger Hausmann: "Dense, poet, don't meet!": The European writers' association in Weimar 1941–1948. Vittorio Klostermann, Frankfurt am Main 2004, p. 251, footnote no.183.
  19. ^ Budak, Mile 1889- Novellas. In: worldcat.org. Retrieved January 15, 2015 .
  20. ↑ Boris Neusius: language and language awareness in Croatia. Empirical research into Croatian today in Zagreb. Inaugural dissertation to obtain the doctoral degree in philosophy at the Ludwig Maximilians University Munich, Munich 2008, p. 38.
  21. ↑ Emil Čić: Povijest hrvatskih neprijatelja. Vlastita autorska naklada, Zagreb 2002.
  22. ↑ Helma Schaefer: Between tradition and automation: The Leipzig binding work after 1945 . In: Leipziger Jahrbuch zur Buchgeschichte 2 (1992) . Otto Harrassowitz Verlag, Wiesbaden 1992, p. 245 .
  23. ↑ DNB 1036913740
  24. ↑ Object database of the Leipzig City History Museum, object no. K / 857/2002. Retrieved June 27, 2013 .
  25. ↑ Object database of the Leipzig City History Museum, object no. F 156/2005. Retrieved July 23, 2013 .
  26. ↑ Object database of the Leipzig City History Museum, object no. G 64/245. Retrieved June 27, 2013 .