Origins of Bosnian humour and its role during the siege of Sarajevo
Orlov D.
2021Cracow Tertium Society for the Promotion of Language Studies
European Journal of Humour Research
2021#9Issue 4173 - 188 pp.
This article presents an ethnographic study of Bosnian humour during the siege of Sarajevo.The siege of Sarajevo, which followed the collapse of Yugoslavia, lasted four years. Despite theatrocities and war crimes committed against the residents of Sarajevo during this period, theyare known for the spirit they demonstrated, and humour was a crucial element of this spirit. Onthe basis of two-month fieldwork in Sarajevo, I demonstrate how Bosnians employed humour tocomment on this traumatic event, made sense of it, and coped with the experience. Althoughhumour under extreme conditions is mainly viewed as a coping mechanism, by exploring theorigins of Bosnian humour and stereotypes about Bosnians, I demonstrate that a notablehumorous response to the traumatic events of the 1990s was more than a coping mechanism orjust a response to this particular war. As I argue, a humorous attitude toward life in Bosniabelongs to people’s identity; it has developed historically as a response to the sufferings of aperipheral group in the region and, as a result, has become a cultural artifact belonging toBosnians’ ethnic consciousness. In their attempt to preserve a sense of normalcy and restoredignity during the siege, Sarajevans continued to engage in their traditional humour, as doingotherwise would mean they had lost control over who they were.
Ethnic humour , Humour under extreme conditions , Stereotypes , The siege of sarajevo
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“Turar” Center for Research in Humanities and Social Sciences, Kazakhstan
“Turar” Center for Research in Humanities and Social Sciences
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