engleski

America in the Long Narrative Poem Jamerika – trip by Masa Kolanovic

The topic of the long narrative poem Jamerika – trip by Masa Kolanovic is a family trip to America, a place previously known to the main female character only through popular Western culture. The first word of the title is the Dalmatian dialectal name for America, where the character's ancestors went in their search for a better life. The second word is the English word for travel, which also stands for a hallucination that is confirmed by the atmosphere of the long poem. The travel in this book primarily takes place in the sphere of language, which is actualised on several levels: in the interaction of Croatian and English language (and Central European culture and the culture of the West at the same time) ; in the citation of Croatian literary heritage and the texts of Croatian and American popular music ; in Marx's citation mystification, which reminds of Croatia's socialist past and in the ironized relocation of socialist slogans in the context of the travel around America. Along with the linguistic medium, the art medium is also explicitly expressed on every page of the book. Citation procedures and art collages confirm that the other culture is not only what is discovered on travels, but one's own culture is also viewed in a new context. The end brings the judgment on America. In the apocalyptic tone, which ironizes biblical commonplaces, it is presented as a country burdened by consumerism and fear of terrorism, which is why the main character equates the delusion of American dream with that of socialism. The initial position of infantile narrator outgrows into a critical deconstruction of the myth of America as the promised land.

long poem, intermediality, American dream, postsocialism, cultural binarism, popular culture

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