Oskar Davičo ( sr-cyr, Оскар Давичо; 18 January 1909 – 30 September 1989) was a

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

n novelist and poet. A leading literary figure of his generation, he was one of the most acclaimed Serbian

surrealist Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

writers, but also a

revolutionary socialist Revolutionary socialism is a political philosophy, doctrine, and tradition within socialism that stresses the idea that a social revolution is necessary to bring about structural changes in society. More specifically, it is the view that revolu ...

activist and a politician. Davičo was awarded prestigious literary NIN Award a record three times.

Biography

Early life

Oskar Davičo was born on 18 January 1909 in

Šabac Šabac ( sr-Cyrl, Шабац, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative centre of the Mačva District in western Serbia. The traditional centre of the fertile Mačva region, Šabac is located on the right banks of the river ...

to a Sephardic Jewish family. His father was an atheist Jewish accountant and a

socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

. During World War I in Serbia, Šabac was the scene of heavy fighting, so the whole family moved temporarily to

Negotin Negotin ( sr-cyrl, Неготин, ; ) is a town and municipality located in the Bor District of Southern and Eastern Serbia, eastern Serbia. It is situated near the borders between Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria. It is the judicial center of the Bo ...

Interwar period

Davičo finished the

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

and lower gymnasium Šabac, and then continued his education at the

First Belgrade Gymnasium First Belgrade Gymnasium () is a Gymnasium (school), gymnasium (Central European type of grammar school) with a long tradition, founded in 1839 in Belgrade, Serbia. Since 1938, it is situated in the center of the city, on 61 Cara Dušana Street. T ...

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

. Davičo started to write poetry while in gymnasium. He was expelled from the gymnasium in 6th grade for criticizing religion in a self-published magazine. He later graduated as a part-time student in 1926. After that, he left for

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

and enrolled at the

University of Paris The University of Paris (), known Metonymy, metonymically as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, from 1150 to 1970, except for 1793–1806 during the French Revolution. Emerging around 1150 as a corporation associated wit ...

, studying

romance studies Romance studies or Romance philology (; ; ; ; ; ; ) is an academic discipline that covers the study of the languages, literatures, and cultures of areas that speak Romance languages. Romance studies departments usually include the study of Spa ...

. In Paris he worked as a

waiter Waiting staff (British English, BrE), waiters () / waitresses (), or servers (AmE) are those who work at a restaurant, a diner, or a Bar (establishment), bar and sometimes in private homes, attending to customers by supplying them with food an ...

courier A courier is a person or organization that delivers a message, package or letter from one place or person to another place or person. Typically, a courier provides their courier service on a commercial contract basis; however, some couriers are ...

, shoe maker,

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

trainer, and a paid companion of wealthy women. While in Paris, Davičo attended meetings of the

Communist Party of France The French Communist Party (, , PCF) is a communist party in France. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its MEPs sit with The Left in the European Parliament – GUE/NGL group. The PCF was founded in 1920 by Marxist� ...

. He left the university without passing a single exam. After two years in France, he returned to Belgrade in 1928 and enrolled at the

University of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy The University of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy (), established in 1838 within the Belgrade Higher School, is the oldest Faculty at the University of Belgrade. The Faculty building is located at the meeting point of the Čika-Ljubina with the ...

studying

French language French ( or ) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, it descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. French evolved from Northern Old Gallo-R ...

and

French literature French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by French people, French citizens; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of Franc ...

. He graduated in 1930 ''

cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...

''. Soon after graduation, he found employment as a French language teacher in a high school in

Šibenik Šibenik (), historically known as Sebenico (), is a historic town in Croatia, located in central Dalmatia, where the river Krka (Croatia), Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea. Šibenik is one of the oldest Croatia, Croatian self-governing cities ...

. He was fired after only three months on the job, and then got a

part-time job A part-time job is a form of employment that carries fewer hours per week than a full-time job. Workers are commonly considered to be part-time if they work fewer than 30 hours per week. Their hours of work may be organised in shifts. The shifts a ...

as a teacher at the First Belgrade Gymnasium, the same school he was expelled from in 1925. In 1931 Davičo got a full-time job as a high school teacher in

Bihać Bihać is a city and the administrative centre of Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of river Una (Sava), Una in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina, in th ...

. While in Bihać, he secretly founded the local committee of the

Communist Party of Yugoslavia The League of Communists of Yugoslavia, known until 1952 as the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, was the founding and ruling party of SFR Yugoslavia. It was formed in 1919 as the main communist opposition party in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats a ...

(CPY). Communist activity was illegal in the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

after 1920. Davičo was arrested on 31 May 1932 after being betrayed by one of the members of the CPY, and the court sentenced him to five years in prison. He served his sentence at Lepoglava prison and

Sremska Mitrovica prison Sremska Mitrovica Prison ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Казнено-поправни завод у Сремској Митровици, Kazneno-popravni zavod u Sremskoj Mitrovici) is the biggest prison in Serbia, consisting of two facilities. It is situated ...

. While incarcerated, he wrote a novel titled ''"Detinjstvo"'' (''Childhood''), but did not finish it. The manuscript was lost during his transfer from Lepoglava to Sremska Mitrovica in 1935. After his release, he lived in Belgrade and worked as a co-editor of a magazine called ''"Naša stvarnost"'' (''Our Reality''). After a broad police action in Belgrade in 1938, Davičo was arrested again, but released soon after. He left Belgrade and moved to

Kopaonik Kopaonik ( sr-Cyrl, Копаоник; ) is a mountain range located in Kosovo and Central Serbia. The highest point of this mountain range is the Pančić's Peak with an altitude of . The central part of the Kopaonik plateau was declared a nation ...

. While in Kopaonik, he wrote poem cycles ''"Hana"'' and ''"Srbija"'' and some other poems that were later published in a collection ''"Višnja za zidom"'' (''A Cherry Tree behind a Wall''). In 1939 he moved 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, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

on orders of the leadership of the CPY. After he showed ''"Hana"'' to

Miroslav Krleža Miroslav Krleža (; 7 July 1893 – 29 December 1981) was a Croatian writer who is widely considered to be the greatest Croatian writer of the 20th century. He wrote notable works in all the literary genres, including poetry ('' The Ballads o ...

and

Vaso Bogdanov Vaso may refer to the following items: * Vaso, India, a village in Kheda District Of Gujarat, India * Vaso (name), several individuals with the name Vaso * Vaso-occlusive crisis A vaso-occlusive crisis is a common painful complication of sickle ...

, they advised him to write a novel about his life in prison. Davičo finished the novel in March 1941, but the April War broke out soon after, and the novel was never printed.

World War II

Working illegally for the CPY, Davičo moved to Italian-occupied

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

, where he was arrested in August 1941. To the Italian police, he gave a fake Jewish name Ostap Daburo, and they did not recognize him. He was taken to an Italian camp for Jews on the island of

Korčula Korčula () is a Croatian island in the Adriatic Sea. It has an area of , is long and on average wide, and lies just off the Dalmatian coast. Its 15,522 inhabitants (2011) make it the second most populous Adriatic island after Krk. The populat ...

and then

interned Internment is the imprisonment of people, commonly in large groups, without Criminal charge, charges or Indictment, intent to file charges. The term is especially used for the confinement "of enemy citizens in wartime or of terrorism suspects ...

Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...

, Italy. During 1942, he tried to escape two times, but failed. He finally escaped in 1943, and moved back to

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

via

Monte Gargano Gargano () is a historical and geographical sub-region in the province of Foggia, Apulia, southeast Italy, consisting of a wide isolated mountain massif made of highland and several peaks and forming the backbone of a promontory projecting into ...

. There, he joined the 1st Proletarian Brigade of the

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...

as a soldier. He saw fighting in

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

Sandžak Sandžak (Serbian Cyrillic: ; ) is a historical and geo-political region in the Balkans, located in the southwestern part of Serbia and the eastern part of Montenegro. The Bosnian/ Serbian term ''Sandžak'' derives from the Sanjak of Novi Paza ...

, Tara and

Durmitor Durmitor ( Montenegrin: Дурмитор, or ) is a massif located in northwestern Montenegro. It is part of the Dinaric Alps. Its highest peak, Bobotov Kuk, reaches a height of . The massif is limited by the Tara River Canyon on the north, th ...

. He worked briefly in the press bureau of the Central Command on the island of Vis. Davičo rejoined the Brigade and participated in the Belgrade Offensive.

Post-World War II

After the liberation, Davičo stayed in Belgrade and worked for a month in the newly established

Tanjug Tanjug (/'tʌnjʊg/) ( sr-cyr, Танјуг; sometimes stylized as TANJUG) was a Serbian state news agency based in Belgrade, which officially ceased to exist in March 2021. Since then, the Belgrade-based private company Tačno d.o.o., Tanjug Ta� ...

news agency. From there, he moved to '' Borba'', and then to ''Glas'' newspaper. As a reporter, he reported from the

Nuremberg Trials #REDIRECT Nuremberg trials {{redirect category shell, {{R from other capitalisation{{R from move ...

, from the

Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...

during the Trieste crisis, and from the

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War () took place from 1946 to 1949. The conflict, which erupted shortly after the end of World War II, consisted of a Communism, Communist-led uprising against the established government of the Kingdom of Greece. The rebels decl ...

, where he joined

Markos Vafiadis Markos Vafeiadis (also spelled as Vafiadis and Vafiades; ; – ) was a leading figure of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) during the Greek Resistance and the Greek Civil War. Pre-war life Vafiedis was born in Tosya, Ottoman Empire in 1906 a ...

and his

Democratic Army of Greece The Democratic Army of Greece (DAG; , ΔΣΕ; ''Dimokratikós Stratós Elládas'', DSE) was the army founded by the Communist Party of Greece during the Greek Civil War (1946–1949). At its height, it had a strength of around 50,000 men and w ...

. After publishing a travel novel about his experiences in Greece in 1947, Davičo left journalism and became a full-time writer and for a time the editor of the literary journal ''Delo'' (NoLit, Belgrade). He spent the rest of his life in Belgrade.

Death

Oskar Davičo died on 30 September 1989 in Belgrade. He is interred in the Alley of Distinguished Citizens in the

Belgrade New Cemetery The New Cemetery ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Ново гробље, Novo groblje) is a cemetery A cemetery, burial ground, gravesite, graveyard, or a green space called a memorial park or memorial garden, is a place where the remains of many death, ...

Literary work

Davičo's literary work belongs to the

movement. He started writing poetry in 1925, while in gymnasium. His early poetry is

experimental An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs whe ...

and strongly surrealist. In the late 1930s, he added

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives fro ...

and

leftist Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social hierarchies. Left-wing politi ...

elements to his poetry. Although mainly social, his 1938 poetry book ''"Pesme"'' (''Poems'') also contains humor, word play, and eroticism. His next two poetry books, ''"Hana"'' (1939) and ''"Višnja za zidom"'' (1950) are thematically linked to "Pesme" and they form a poetic trilogy. The main theme of ''"Hana"'' is love, while the theme of ''"Višnja za zidom"'' is

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates for, a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective to describe something producing a major and sudden impact on society. Definition The term—bot ...

. Similar theme is explored in the poem ''"Zrenjanin"'' (1949) about the life and death of Partisan leader

Žarko Zrenjanin Žarko Zrenjanin "Uča" ( sr-Cyrl, Жарко Зрењанин, ; 11 September 1902 – 4 November 1942) was a Yugoslav partisan and National Hero of Yugoslavia. The city of Zrenjanin, in Serbia, is named after him, since 1946. Zrenjanin w ...

. The climax of Davičo's surrealist poetry is reached in the poem ''"Čovekov čovek"'' (1953). After ''"Čovekov čovek"'', Davičo published a dozen more poetry books, which were poorly received with both critic and readers. Davičo started writing novels during and after the World War II. Novels are the most important part of his work after the poetry. In the novels ''"Ćutnje"'' (1963), ''"Gladi"'' (1963) ''"Tajne"'' (1964), and ''"Bekstva"'' (1966), he wrote about the prison life of Yugoslavian Communists in the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...

. In ''"Pesma"'' (1952) and ''"Gospodar zaborava"'' (1981), he writes about the World War II in Yugoslavia and the people's liberation movement. Finally, in ''"Beton i svici"'' (1956) and ''"Radni naslov beskraja"'' (1958), Davičo writes about the post-war build-up of Yugoslavia. The main characters of his novels are usually young revolutionary communists. For his literary work, Davičo received numerous awards. He was the only author to be awarded the NIN Award for the novel of the year three times: in 1956 for ''"Beton i svici"'', in 1963 for ''"Gladi"'', and in 1964 for ''"Tajne"''.

Novels

*''"Pesma"'' (''Poem''), 1952 *''"Beton i svici"'' (''Concrete and Fireflies''), 1955 *''"Radni naslov beskraja"'' (''Working Title of the Eternity''), 1958 *''"Generalbas"'', 1962 *''"Ćutnje"'' (''Silences''), 1963 *''"Gladi"'' (''Hungers''), 1963 *''"Tajne"'' (''Secrets''), 1964 *''"Bekstva"'' (''The Escapes''), 1966 *''"Zavičaji"'' (''Homelands''), 1971 *''"Gospodar zaborava" (''The Master of Oblivion''), 1980

Poetry

*''"Anatomija"'' (''Anatomy''), 1930 *''"Pesme"'' (''Poems''), 1938 *''"Hana"'', 1939 *''"

Zrenjanin Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; ; ; ; ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. The city urban area has a population of 67,129 inh ...

''", 1949 *''"Višnja za zidom"'' (''A Cherry Tree Behind a Wall''), 1950 *''"Čovekov čovek"'' (''A Man's Man''), 1953 *''"Nastanjene oči"'' (''Occupied Eyes''), 1954 *''"Flora"'', 1955 *''"Pesme"'' (''Poems''), 1958 *''"Kairos"'', 1959 *''"Tropi"'' (''Tropics''), 1959 *''"Sunovrati"'' (''Downfalls''), 1963 *''"Snimci"'' (''Recordings''), 1963 *''"Pročitani jezik"'' (''A Language Read''), 1972 *''"Telo telu"'' (''Body to Body''), 1975 *''"Veverice-leptiri ili nadopis obojenog žbuna''" (''Squirrel-butterflies, or By-writing of the Colored Bush''), 1976 *''"Misterije dana"'' (''Mysteries of a Day''), 1979

Other

*''"Među Markosovim partizanima"'' (''Amongst Markos' Partisans''), a travel novel, 1947 *''"Poezija i otpori"'' (''Poetry and Resistance''), an essay, 1952 *''"Pre podne"'' (''

Ante meridiem The 12-hour clock is a time convention in which the 24 hours of the day are divided into two periods: a.m. (from Latin , translating to "before midday") and p.m. (from Latin , translating to "after midday"). Each period consists of 12&nb ...

''), an essay, 1960 *''"Crno na belo"'' (''Black on White''), a reportage, 1962 *''"Trg M''" (''M Square''), a poem, 1968 *''"Ritual umiranja jezika"'' (''The Ritual of Language Dying''), an essay, 1971 *''"Reči na delu"'' (''Words on Work''), a poem, 1977 *''"Pod-tekst"'' (''Sub-text''), essays and polemics, 1979

References

Sources

* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davico, Oskar 1909 births 1989 deaths Writers from Šabac 20th-century Serbian Jews Serbian male poets Yugoslav poets Serbian surrealist writers Yugoslav Partisans members University of Paris alumni University of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy alumni 20th-century Serbian novelists 20th-century Serbian poets Yugoslav expatriates in France Burials at Belgrade New Cemetery Recipients of the Order of the Hero of Socialist Labour Members of the Central Committee of the 8th Congress of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia Serbian editors