No nation without representation: heroes going places. A comparative research of Flemish and Slovak heroes in literature. Literary and historical representations of two national rebels: Jan De Lichte (Flanders) versus Juraj Jánošík (Slovakia)

Lic. Benjamin BOSSAERT, M.A.

Doctoral thesis

Abstract:

The aim of the thesis is a comparative study at the intersection of history, literature and cultural studies where a typology of the so-called rural outlaw a primitive rebel figure as a hero in the national movement is investigated. On the one hand the case study discusses the Flemish robber hero Jan de Lichte, on the other hand the Slovak robber hero Juraj Jánošík. In the first part of the thesis a cultural-historical overview is made of the tradition around Jan de Lichte and Juraj Jánošík using theoretical concepts from imagology, written folklore, histoire croisée, an overview of hero typologies and stereotypes about national movements. The second part of the thesis focuses on the writers who depicted the heroes. Using the concept of posture of Jerôme Meizoz, sharpened by the Dutch researcher Ham (2015), the author's relationship as an authority on the characters Jan de Lichte and Juraj Jánošík is investigated. The results of the research show that no strict distinction can be made between a poetic heroic image of a robber criminal versus a so-called noble robber, but an ideal robber hero shares ambiguous treats according to the context. In the historical overview of authors and their posture, it appears that the authors explicitly refer to each other's imaginations of the robber-criminals and a meandering, changing hero concept is outlined.

Abstract:

Cieľom dizertačnej práce je komparatívna štúdia prieniku historických, literárnych a kultúrnych štúdií, kde sa skúma typológia takzvaného rural outlaw. Na jednej strane sa v prípadovej štúdii diskutuje o flámskom hrdinovi - lupič (zbojník) Jan de Lichte, na druhej strane o slovenskom hrdinovi a zbojník Juraj Jánošík. Druhá časť práce je zameraná na autorov, ktorí zobrazovali hrdinov. Na základe koncepcie posture Jerôme Meizoza, doplnené holandským výskumníkom Laurensom Hamom, sa skúma autorský vzťah ako autorita k postavám Jan de Lichte a Juraj Jánošík

Keywords

hrdinovia, rural outlaw, Juraj Jánošík, Jan de Lichte, autorita, posture

Language used: English

Date on which the thesis was submitted / produced: 17. 6. 2020

Thesis defence

• Supervisor: prof. Dr. Wilken Engelbrecht, cand. litt., prof. Dr. Wilken Engelbrecht, cand. litt.

Palacký University Olomouc

Faculty of Arts

Doctoral programme / field:
Theory and History of Literature / Theory of Literature