Ivan Kozarac (February 8, 1885 – November 16, 1910) was a Croatian novelist, poet and writer of short stories.

Biography

Ivan Kozarac was born in

Vinkovci Vinkovci () is a city in Slavonia, in the Vukovar-Syrmia County in eastern Croatia. The city's registered population was 28,247 in the 2021 census, the total population of the city was 31,057, making it the largest town of the county. Surrounde ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

(then

Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia ( hr, Kraljevina Hrvatska i Slavonija; hu, Horvát-Szlavónország or ; de-AT, Königreich Kroatien und Slawonien) was a nominally autonomous kingdom and constitutionally defined separate political nation with ...

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

). He came from a

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasants ...

family that sent him to school, but he managed to finish only two classes. As a thirteen-year-old boy wanting to avoid the family poverty, he was employed as a clerical trainee in a district in Vinkovci. From 1900 until 1906, he worked as a law

clerk A clerk is a white-collar worker who conducts general office tasks, or a worker who performs similar sales-related tasks in a retail environment. The responsibilities of clerical workers commonly include record keeping, filing, staffing service ...

in the office of Levin aristocracy. In 1903, Ivan suffered from

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

, but he is not relieved from his military duty. In 1907, he went to the army (first in

Petrovaradin Petrovaradin ( sr-cyr, Петроварадин, ) is a historic town in the Serbian province of Vojvodina, now a part of the city of Novi Sad. As of 2011, the urban area has 14,810 inhabitants. Lying on the right bank of the Danube, across from t ...

, then in

Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. According to the 2011 census, its population was 55,705. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located on the Zagreb- Rijeka highway and railway line, south-west of Zagre ...

). In 1909, he returned to his hometown, but in the fall of the year he went to

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

where he was employed as a fund manager and director of the Croatian Writers Society. In the summer of 1910, the writer and doctor

Milivoj Dežman Milivoj ( sr, Миливој) is an old Slavic origin given name derived from elements: ''milo'' ("gracius, favour") + ''voj'' ("soldier, war"). Popular primarily in South Slavic states. The name may refer to: *Milivoj Ašner (1913–2011), a fo ...

referred him to treatment in Brestovac. However, Ivan returned home uncured and eventually died in Vinkovci at the age of 25.

Works

Ivan Kozarac was an active writer for only four years. In his lifetime only a single book was published; a compilation of short stories, ''Slavonian Blood'' in 1906, and his other books were released only after his death (thanks in part to the efforts of

Dragutin Tadijanović Dragutin Tadijanović (4 November 1905 – 27 June 2007) was a Croatian poet, and in his native Croatia he is referred to as a " Bard." Tadijanović was born in the village of Rastušje close to Slavonski Brod in the region of Slavonia. He pub ...

). His cardinal work is the novel ''

Đuka Begović ''Đuka Begović'' is a Croatian film directed by Branko Schmidt Branko Schmidt (born 21 September 1957) is a Croatian film director. His 2012 film ''Cannibal Vegetarian'' was selected as the Croatian entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar ...

'', first published in 1911. The novel describes many Slavonian traditions in an almost documentary style. It has since been made into a theatrical play and a movie by

Branko Schmidt Branko Schmidt (born 21 September 1957) is a Croatian film director. His 2012 film ''Cannibal Vegetarian'' was selected as the Croatian entry for the Best Foreign Language Oscar at the 85th Academy Awards, but it did not make the final shortlis ...

. Kozarac failed to attract a particular attention to himself in his lifetime. He was a narrator of the life of typical villages of Šokadija during a time when the

Military Frontier The Military Frontier (german: Militärgrenze, sh-Latn, Vojna krajina/Vojna granica, Војна крајина/Војна граница; hu, Katonai határőrvidék; ro, Graniță militară) was a borderland of the Habsburg monarchy and l ...

was freshly reintegrated into

Slavonia Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baranja ...

. He wrote much about the corruption of women and fashion and took a critical stance towards the Church, the wealthy life of some priests, and the false love towards God. His love for his native Slavonia emerges from each of his works.

Legacy

Today a local prize for literary achievement is named after him

Josip Kozarac Josip Kozarac (18 March 1858 – 21 August 1906) was a Croatian writer. Josip Kozarac was born in Vinkovci, Croatia. He studied forestry management in Vienna and later served as forestry official in Vinkovci. He wrote stories, plays and novels. ...

(his uncle and also a writer).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kozarac, Ivan 1885 births 1910 deaths People from Vinkovci People from the Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia Croatian male short story writers Croatian short story writers Croatian male poets 20th-century Croatian poets 20th-century short story writers 20th-century male writers