Problem of the absolute in the poetry of Milos Crnjanski

Abstract

This paper seeks to explain the problem and development of the absolute in the poetry of Milos Crnjanski. The problem of the absolute will be examined through the collection of poems Lyric of Ithaca. The main goal of the interpretation is to point out the visibility of the absolute in the poems, as well as its transformation throughout the three cycles. Moreover, the secondary goals of this paper are considerations of the symbolism of Ithaca - the Odyssean motive of wandering, the return of heroes after the war and the parody of genres. The problem of the absolute has a plethora of meanings in the cycles: in Vidovdan songs it signifies unattainable knowledge, and then the absolute takes on negative connotations; in New shadows, the lyric subject continues the quest for the absolute; in Street verses, the meaning of the absolute is completely destroyed and shattered. The results of the research indicate a wide range in the display of the absolute – from heaven to the street – where it is destroyed. Therefore, we conclude that in the poetry of Milos Crnjanski the lyric subject searches for the absolute which is no longer God.