Primož Kozak
Encyclopedia
Primož Kozak was a Slovenia
n playwright
and essayist. He was, together with Dominik Smole
, Dane Zajc
and Taras Kermauner
, the most visible representative of the so-called Critical generation, a group of Slovenian authors and intellectuals that reflected on the paradoxes of the Communist regime, and the relation between power and individual existence in general.
, in what was then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
, to a famous left liberal intellectual family. His father Ferdo Kozak
was a renowned essayist and literary critic, his uncle Juš Kozak
was the editor of the prestigious national-progressive journal Ljubljanski zvon
. His other uncle Vlado Kozak was an important Communist activist, famous for having drafted both Edvard Kardelj
and Boris Kidrič
, two of the most influential Slovenian Communists, into the Communist Party of Yugoslavia. During World War II, Primož lived under a false identity with a temporary adoptive family, as both his father and uncles were prominent figures in the partisan resistance.
Primož studied philosophy at the University of Ljubljana
and theatre directing at the Academy for Theatre, Radio, Film and Television
. During his student years, he established contatcts with a group of young Slovene intelelctuals who tried to challenge the rigid cultural policies of the Titoist regime. These included, among others, Taras Kermauner
, Janko Kos
, Dominik Smole
, Dane Zajc
, Veljko Rus
, Jože Pučnik
, Gregor Strniša
, Marjan Rožanc
and others. He collaborated in the alternaitve journals Revija 57 and Perspektive, which were both closed down by the regime. He also collaborated in the alternative theatre Stage 57, which was also closed down by the regime in 1964.
Kozak wrote several plays on the issue of revolution, revolutionary terror, and the relation between power and personal integrity. The themes of his plays were all highly controversial for the Communist regime. To avoid direct confrontation, Kozak set them in foreign and distant countries, such as Cuba
or in countries of the Soviet bloc. Since Yugoslavia was a non-aligned
country at the time, criticism to Stalinism
or other "deviant" forms of Socialism was generally permitted. His most famous play is "The Affair" (Afera), set during the anti-Fascist resistance in Northern Italy
, but in fact a metaphorical account of the trial against the dissident Jože Pučnik
. In the play "Dialogues" (Dialogi), set in an anonymous Eastern Europe
an country, Kozak described the paranoic atmosphere of the Stalinist show trials. The play "Congress" (Kongres) deals with ideological struggles at the university and student protests. In the "Legend of St. Che" (Legenda o svetem Che), Kozak deals with the issue of modern political myth in the case of Ernesto Che Guevara.
He also published essays, the most famous of which is "Peter Klepec in America" (Peter Klepec v Ameriki), a travelogue through the United States
in which he reflects on modern civilization from a Slovene and Yugoslav stanpoint.
He died in Ljubljana.
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
n playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
and essayist. He was, together with Dominik Smole
Dominik Smole
Dominik Smole was a Slovenian writer and playwright.-Biography:Smole was born in Ljubljana in what was then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia...
, Dane Zajc
Dane Zajc
Dane Zajc was a Slovenian poet and playwright. He served as president of the Slovene Writers' Association , and was awarded the prestigious Prešeren Award for lifetime achievement...
and Taras Kermauner
Taras Kermauner
Taras Kermauner was a Slovenian literary historian, critic, philosopher, essayist, playwright and translator.- Life :...
, the most visible representative of the so-called Critical generation, a group of Slovenian authors and intellectuals that reflected on the paradoxes of the Communist regime, and the relation between power and individual existence in general.
Life and work
Primož Kozak was born in LjubljanaLjubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
, in what was then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...
, to a famous left liberal intellectual family. His father Ferdo Kozak
Ferdo Kozak
Ferdo Kozak was a Slovenian author, playwright, editor and politician.He was born as Ferdinand Kozak in an upper middle class family in Ljubljana, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire...
was a renowned essayist and literary critic, his uncle Juš Kozak
Juš Kozak
Juš Kozak , also known under the pseudonym Jalanov, was a Slovenian writer, playwright and editor. He is most famous for his autobiographic novels, such as "The Cell" on his experience as political prisoner, and "Wooden Spoon" on life during World War II.He was born in a wealthy middle class...
was the editor of the prestigious national-progressive journal Ljubljanski zvon
Ljubljanski zvon
Ljubljanski zvon was a journal published in Ljubljana in Slovene between 1881 and 1941. It was considered one of the most prestigious literary and cultural magazines in Slovenia.- Early period :...
. His other uncle Vlado Kozak was an important Communist activist, famous for having drafted both Edvard Kardelj
Edvard Kardelj
Edvard Kardelj also known under the pseudonyms Sperans and Krištof was a Yugoslav communist political leader, economist, partisan, publicist, and full member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts...
and Boris Kidrič
Boris Kidric
Boris Kidrič was a leading Slovenian Communist who was, jointly with Edvard Kardelj, one of the chief organizers of the Partisan struggle in Slovenia from 1941 to 1945....
, two of the most influential Slovenian Communists, into the Communist Party of Yugoslavia. During World War II, Primož lived under a false identity with a temporary adoptive family, as both his father and uncles were prominent figures in the partisan resistance.
Primož studied philosophy at the University of Ljubljana
University of Ljubljana
The University of Ljubljana is the oldest and largest university in Slovenia. With 64,000 enrolled graduate and postgraduate students, it is among the largest universities in Europe.-Beginnings:...
and theatre directing at the Academy for Theatre, Radio, Film and Television
Academy for Theatre, Radio, Film and Television
The Academy of Theatre, Radio, Film and Television is an academy of the University of Ljubljana in Ljubljana, Slovenia. It is the only college and graduate school in Slovenia with a similar curriculum. It is composed of three colleges: the College for Theatre and Radio, the College for Film and...
. During his student years, he established contatcts with a group of young Slovene intelelctuals who tried to challenge the rigid cultural policies of the Titoist regime. These included, among others, Taras Kermauner
Taras Kermauner
Taras Kermauner was a Slovenian literary historian, critic, philosopher, essayist, playwright and translator.- Life :...
, Janko Kos
Janko Kos
Janko Kos is a Slovenian literary historian, theoretician and critic.He was born in Ljubljana in what was then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia as the son of the painter and sculptor Tine Kos...
, Dominik Smole
Dominik Smole
Dominik Smole was a Slovenian writer and playwright.-Biography:Smole was born in Ljubljana in what was then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia...
, Dane Zajc
Dane Zajc
Dane Zajc was a Slovenian poet and playwright. He served as president of the Slovene Writers' Association , and was awarded the prestigious Prešeren Award for lifetime achievement...
, Veljko Rus
Veljko Rus
Veljko Rus is a Slovenian sociologist, writer and academic.He was born in Ljubljana, Slovenia to a prominent upper middle class family...
, Jože Pučnik
Jože Pucnik
Jože Pučnik was a Slovenian public intellectual, sociologist and politician. During the Communist regime of Josip Broz Tito, Pučnik was one of the most outspoken Slovenian critics of dictatorship and lack of civil liberties in former Yugoslavia. He was imprisoned for a total of 7 years, and later...
, Gregor Strniša
Gregor Strniša
Gregor Strniša was a Slovenian poet, playwright, and songwriter. He is considered as one of the most important Slovene language poet of the second half of the 20th century...
, Marjan Rožanc
Marjan Rožanc
Marjan Rožanc was a Slovenian author, playwright and journalist. He is mostly known for his essays, and is considered one of the foremost essayists in the Slovene language, along with Ivan Cankar, Jože Javoršek and Drago Jančar, and as a great master of style.He was born in a working-class suborb...
and others. He collaborated in the alternaitve journals Revija 57 and Perspektive, which were both closed down by the regime. He also collaborated in the alternative theatre Stage 57, which was also closed down by the regime in 1964.
Kozak wrote several plays on the issue of revolution, revolutionary terror, and the relation between power and personal integrity. The themes of his plays were all highly controversial for the Communist regime. To avoid direct confrontation, Kozak set them in foreign and distant countries, such as Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
or in countries of the Soviet bloc. Since Yugoslavia was a non-aligned
Non-Aligned Movement
The Non-Aligned Movement is a group of states considering themselves not aligned formally with or against any major power bloc. As of 2011, the movement had 120 members and 17 observer countries...
country at the time, criticism to Stalinism
Stalinism
Stalinism refers to the ideology that Joseph Stalin conceived and implemented in the Soviet Union, and is generally considered a branch of Marxist–Leninist ideology but considered by some historians to be a significant deviation from this philosophy...
or other "deviant" forms of Socialism was generally permitted. His most famous play is "The Affair" (Afera), set during the anti-Fascist resistance in Northern Italy
Northern Italy
Northern Italy is a wide cultural, historical and geographical definition, without any administrative usage, used to indicate the northern part of the Italian state, also referred as Settentrione or Alta Italia...
, but in fact a metaphorical account of the trial against the dissident Jože Pučnik
Jože Pucnik
Jože Pučnik was a Slovenian public intellectual, sociologist and politician. During the Communist regime of Josip Broz Tito, Pučnik was one of the most outspoken Slovenian critics of dictatorship and lack of civil liberties in former Yugoslavia. He was imprisoned for a total of 7 years, and later...
. In the play "Dialogues" (Dialogi), set in an anonymous Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
an country, Kozak described the paranoic atmosphere of the Stalinist show trials. The play "Congress" (Kongres) deals with ideological struggles at the university and student protests. In the "Legend of St. Che" (Legenda o svetem Che), Kozak deals with the issue of modern political myth in the case of Ernesto Che Guevara.
He also published essays, the most famous of which is "Peter Klepec in America" (Peter Klepec v Ameriki), a travelogue through the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in which he reflects on modern civilization from a Slovene and Yugoslav stanpoint.
He died in Ljubljana.
Sources
- Janko KosJanko KosJanko Kos is a Slovenian literary historian, theoretician and critic.He was born in Ljubljana in what was then the Kingdom of Yugoslavia as the son of the painter and sculptor Tine Kos...
, Slovenska književnost (Ljubljana: Cankarjeva založba, 1982), 174-175.