The Yugoslav Wars 1990–1999 in contemporary literature in Germany and Austria

Abstract

In this article, the literature on the wars in the former Yugoslavia is critically examined. The inter-pretive patterns of these wars aim at the authors’ confrontation with the “West that has gone wild” (Handke) and its colonial mentality, which manifests itself in the politically determined friend-enemy ascriptions. The writing about the wars also expresses a presumption whether or not we are in a state before “the war” (Monika Maron) and preparing for a new European tragedy through the language of hatred. On the whole, the article attests a responsible attitude by all authors, regardless of their position on the sides of the conflicts that are manifested in this high-quality literature.