PORTRET INTELEKTUALCA: FEMINISTIČKI ČASOPIS ŽENSKI POKRET (1920–1938) O SRPSKIM KRITIČARIMA I PISCIMA

Abstract

The paper examines the role and reception of Serbian male literary critics and (literature) writers within the feminist magazine Women’s Movement (1920–1938). Regarding the critics, the magazine published two significant articles: one dedicated to the well-known Serbian critic Jovan Skerlić (1877–1914), and the other focusing on his successor Milan Bogdanović (1892–1964), also a notable critic. Both texts praise the im- pressionistic and relativistic qualities found in Skerlić and Bogdanović’s literary criticism. The paper argues that the praise stems from the potential the mentioned type of literary criticism has when it comes to the appreciation of women’s writing. Additionally, the paper highlights the impact of the broader political and artistic ideas of Jovan Skerlić on the Women’s Movement and its female contributors (some of whom were students of Skerlić). The second part of the paper analyzes the magazine’s articles about Serbi- an writers. Written predominantly with approval and from a feminist and emancipatory perspective, these texts primarily address the representation of women in male-authored fiction. It’s worth noting that Jovan Skerlić also approved the writings of most of the male authors mentioned in the Women’s Movement, emphasizing the emancipatory elements in their works. Through the texts about critics and writers, the Women’s Movement pre- sented a portrait of the male intellectual whose political beliefs and literary or scientific work align with the feminist goals. At the same time, the female critics and contributors in the magazine did not hesitate to criticize those intellectuals who demonstrated their reactionary views on women and feminist aims and battles.