Naming/Taming the Enemy: Balkan Oral Tradition and the Formation of ‘the Turk’ as the Political Enemy
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The article approaches the question of political views promoted by oral tradition
through Carl Schmitt’s notion of politics as the distinction between friend and
enemy. It focuses on four versions of “Perović Batrić”, a comparatively short Montenegrin
song with a typical subject of blood revenge, documented during the
first half of the nineteenth century in Serbia, Montenegro and Herzegovina. It is
demonstated that the only version documented without any impact of the ruling
Montenegrin Petrović family from Cetinje displays explicit antagonism between
the Montenegrin and Herzegovinian Orthodox Christian tribes and has no explicit
antiturkish sentiment. In addition, two other versions written down from Montenegrin
singers influenced by Cetinje as the political centre show the consolidation
of political perspective and emphasize the hostilities between the Montenegrins
and the local Turks. True political character of the enemy in the Schmittian sense,
it is argued, is finally... recognized only in the version of “Perović Batrić” edited by
the Montenegrin bishop-prince Petar Petrović Njegoš II. In this song, the hostility
towards Batrić’s adversary Osman follows not from his tribal conformity or his
distinctive personality, but from his “Turkishness” as such. It is therefore argued
that this recognition of the specifically political character of the enemy occurred
under the increasing influence of Cetinje (as the political centre) on the representation
of the oral tradition and that nationalistic elements in oral tradition mainly
became associated with it, and inserted into it, during the process of publication
and canonization of the oral tradition in the first half of the nineteenth century
Keywords:
Balkan oral tradition / Perović Batrić / politics / hostility / Carl SchmittSource:
Us and Them – Symbolic Divisions in Western Balkan Societies, 2013, 19-36Publisher:
- Belgrade: The Centre for Empirical Cultural Studies of South-East Europe
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IFDTTY - CHAP AU - Pavlović, Aleksandar PY - 2013 UR - http://rifdt.instifdt.bg.ac.rs/123456789/1696 AB - The article approaches the question of political views promoted by oral tradition through Carl Schmitt’s notion of politics as the distinction between friend and enemy. It focuses on four versions of “Perović Batrić”, a comparatively short Montenegrin song with a typical subject of blood revenge, documented during the first half of the nineteenth century in Serbia, Montenegro and Herzegovina. It is demonstated that the only version documented without any impact of the ruling Montenegrin Petrović family from Cetinje displays explicit antagonism between the Montenegrin and Herzegovinian Orthodox Christian tribes and has no explicit antiturkish sentiment. In addition, two other versions written down from Montenegrin singers influenced by Cetinje as the political centre show the consolidation of political perspective and emphasize the hostilities between the Montenegrins and the local Turks. True political character of the enemy in the Schmittian sense, it is argued, is finally recognized only in the version of “Perović Batrić” edited by the Montenegrin bishop-prince Petar Petrović Njegoš II. In this song, the hostility towards Batrić’s adversary Osman follows not from his tribal conformity or his distinctive personality, but from his “Turkishness” as such. It is therefore argued that this recognition of the specifically political character of the enemy occurred under the increasing influence of Cetinje (as the political centre) on the representation of the oral tradition and that nationalistic elements in oral tradition mainly became associated with it, and inserted into it, during the process of publication and canonization of the oral tradition in the first half of the nineteenth century PB - Belgrade: The Centre for Empirical Cultural Studies of South-East Europe T2 - Us and Them – Symbolic Divisions in Western Balkan Societies T1 - Naming/Taming the Enemy: Balkan Oral Tradition and the Formation of ‘the Turk’ as the Political Enemy SP - 19 EP - 36 UR - https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_rifdt_1696 ER -
@inbook{ author = "Pavlović, Aleksandar", year = "2013", abstract = "The article approaches the question of political views promoted by oral tradition through Carl Schmitt’s notion of politics as the distinction between friend and enemy. It focuses on four versions of “Perović Batrić”, a comparatively short Montenegrin song with a typical subject of blood revenge, documented during the first half of the nineteenth century in Serbia, Montenegro and Herzegovina. It is demonstated that the only version documented without any impact of the ruling Montenegrin Petrović family from Cetinje displays explicit antagonism between the Montenegrin and Herzegovinian Orthodox Christian tribes and has no explicit antiturkish sentiment. In addition, two other versions written down from Montenegrin singers influenced by Cetinje as the political centre show the consolidation of political perspective and emphasize the hostilities between the Montenegrins and the local Turks. True political character of the enemy in the Schmittian sense, it is argued, is finally recognized only in the version of “Perović Batrić” edited by the Montenegrin bishop-prince Petar Petrović Njegoš II. In this song, the hostility towards Batrić’s adversary Osman follows not from his tribal conformity or his distinctive personality, but from his “Turkishness” as such. It is therefore argued that this recognition of the specifically political character of the enemy occurred under the increasing influence of Cetinje (as the political centre) on the representation of the oral tradition and that nationalistic elements in oral tradition mainly became associated with it, and inserted into it, during the process of publication and canonization of the oral tradition in the first half of the nineteenth century", publisher = "Belgrade: The Centre for Empirical Cultural Studies of South-East Europe", journal = "Us and Them – Symbolic Divisions in Western Balkan Societies", booktitle = "Naming/Taming the Enemy: Balkan Oral Tradition and the Formation of ‘the Turk’ as the Political Enemy", pages = "19-36", url = "https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_rifdt_1696" }
Pavlović, A.. (2013). Naming/Taming the Enemy: Balkan Oral Tradition and the Formation of ‘the Turk’ as the Political Enemy. in Us and Them – Symbolic Divisions in Western Balkan Societies Belgrade: The Centre for Empirical Cultural Studies of South-East Europe., 19-36. https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_rifdt_1696
Pavlović A. Naming/Taming the Enemy: Balkan Oral Tradition and the Formation of ‘the Turk’ as the Political Enemy. in Us and Them – Symbolic Divisions in Western Balkan Societies. 2013;:19-36. https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_rifdt_1696 .
Pavlović, Aleksandar, "Naming/Taming the Enemy: Balkan Oral Tradition and the Formation of ‘the Turk’ as the Political Enemy" in Us and Them – Symbolic Divisions in Western Balkan Societies (2013):19-36, https://hdl.handle.net/21.15107/rcub_rifdt_1696 .