ОДРАСТАЊЕ КАО ОБРЕД ПРЕЛАЗА У ПРОЗИ ДЕСАНКЕ МАКСИМОВИЋ
GROWING UP AS A TRANSITION RITUAL IN THE PROSE OF DESANKA MAKSIMOVIĆ

Summary/Abstract: The paper research the relation between the prose of Desanka Maksimović and the traditional rituals, particularly the ritual of transition. In this, the transposition was explored of the recognizable ritual elements and their presence in the new semiotic complexes. The initial conjecture regards that the researched body of work contains the images of certain rituals, ceremonies and customs which all can be reconstructed by using ethnology, mythology and folklore studies. Particularly are highlighted the events which bring to the literary characters in their liminal age (a young boy /girl) the newcomprehension of reality, the awareness of self and others, thereby preparing them for entering the world of adults. The author accomplished this by central display of the child’s mind within the significant liminal event. Those initiated in a liminal stage are being detached from their existing world, they spend certain time in seclusion, either physically or in their thoughts (the separation), so that afterwards they can join the new world of adulthood. Their social midst, mostly parents, adults, as well as their peers, play an important role in the process of maturing and entering the other world. They help the main character to cope with transition with a lesser pain, undertaking the role of mediators, and play their part in helping the initiated one to avoid a possibly difficult distress, suffering and disappointment, in order to permanently integrate in the world of adulthood. The rituals of initiation into a senior age group, wedding ceremonies, acceptance of strangers, they all correspond well in style and norms to the prose in which they are included. The research came to the conclusion that the early stories and novels from the author’s mature literary phase, confirmed again that the entire opus of Desanka Maksimovic rests on archetypes and symbolism of the pagan and christian traditions, and represents a distinctive creative concept. The rituals of traverse between childhood and adulthood were researched in the sample novels Pradevojčica, and the exemplary childhood stories in the fourth volume of Celokupna dela Desanke Maksimović.

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