THE NOT-SO-NOBLE SAVAGE: BALKANISM IN MARY EDITH DURHAM’S THROUGH THE LANDS OF THE SERB
THE NOT-SO-NOBLE SAVAGE: BALKANISM IN MARY EDITH DURHAM’S THROUGH THE LANDS OF THE SERB

Summary/Abstract: This paper deals with the representation of the Balkans in Mary Edith Durham’s travel novel Through the Lands of the Serb. It aims at analaysing the novel from a postcolonial perspective to expose instances of constructing the Balkans as ‘the other’ within Europe. Maria Todorova’s concept of Balkanism provides a useful theoretical framework to engage with western stereotypes about the Balkans critically. The paper's first part concerns the literary conventions of travel writing, and the second part critically examines some examples of Balkanism. The examples of Balkanism investigated include the depictions of the region as primitive, stuck in the past, impure, infantile, violent, and animal-like. Even though most of the stereotypes are negative, it should be noted that Durham also creates positive stereotypes that are not less harmful.

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