Lectures / 12/03/2009 7:00 pm

The Power of the (Poet’s) Word versus the Apocalypse – Stevan Tontič and the Civil War in Former Yugoslavia

When I was in that hell,” wrote Bosnian poet Stevan Tontič, “poetry became (…) a part of the power that I acquired to my surprise and that brought me healing amidst the helplessness.” He dealt with what transpired in that inferno, the civil war in former Yugoslavia that he personally experienced in besieged Sarajevo, in poems that he wrote while those battles were raging, during his time in exile in Germany (1992-2001) and following the return to his homeland. His writing (poetry, essays, short stories) possesses a revelatory power in its confrontations with all the lies and cruelty, but is nevertheless full of humor and often comes across as ironic or sarcastic. The reading will be followed by a chat with the poet.