The Level of Fictionalization in Andrej Čebokli’s Dnevnik

Abstract

The paper deals with the theory of literary diaries, which it portrays in terms of literary science. Initially, it illustrates the conclusions of relevant studies, at first in Slovenian literary science, where diaries are vaguely mentioned as a semi-literary genre. Subsequently, it extends the horizon to Europe, especially French and German literary studies, which have dealt with diaries quite thoroughly. – Diaries are to be treated as part of a wide range of autobiographical forms of literature, as a special type of autobiographical discourse, which has its own characteristics (personality development, simultaneity of events and writing). The direct approach to the reader is one of the purposes of a diary that must have some fictive addressee; hence the difference between the writing and the reading selves, which creates a relationship in diary literature and usually represents two different roles within the same subject – the writer. – German literary science has particularly treated diaries from a historical point of view: Gustav René Hocke presented a true historical feature of diaries in European literature with relevant psychological studies, which are, however, rather outdated today. His major contribution is the definition of self-observation and observation of the world (Selbst- and Weltbeobachtung), which are two basic components of any diary literature. – Before formulating a theory on diaries, the paper highlights psychological studies on the purposes of writers, and explains why the author has written a diary and how the author would define it (P. Lejeune even conducted a survey on this matter in France). The author treats him- or herself with some distance. According to Alex Aronson, the diary is therefore an image in a mirror. – The theory is based on the relationship between fictionality and non-fictionality. As a consequence, how much the borderline between them is set to be crossed and whether the message will be consciously credible or just an illusion – and thus a literary work merely interpreting reality – entirely depends on the author’s purpose. Some features are suggested a posteriori as necessary for a literary work to be defined as a literary diary. Taking autobiographical discourse into account, the main features of a diary are the chronological and spatial setting of events, the simultaneity of events and writing, first-person narration, telegraphic language, and a clear purpose. – The second part of the study is focused on Dnevnik (Diary) written by Andrej Čebokli between 1916 and 1919, and analyzes the fictionalization of events on three levels: the metaphorization of reality by means of the expressionist Zeitgeist, the objectivization of events, and the conveyance of literary plans. Due to a clear recourse to fiction, it appears as though Čebokli was writing his war diary to compensate for the impossibility of writing at the battle-front, and therefore, he consciously considered it a piece of work meant for public consumption rather than as a strictly personal journal. – Some perspectives of diary literature studies are presented in the conclusion to the paper, especially through the perception of literary plans as a “sub-form” of the diary.