Novel
Dom v stráni
Not translated into English
Martin Kukučín · 1904
Synopsis
In a patriarchal village community on the island of Brač, a young peasant woman and a young man from a different background fall in love. Their love comes up against traditions, the cultural differences between the groups of the village, between “us” and “them”, the organisation of families and customs that everyone follows without ever having written them down. The novel paints a society of the turn of the century far removed from the Slovak world of its author's first stories.
Context
The novel appeared as a serial in Slovenské pohľady in 1903 and 1904, sent by the author to the editor Jozef Škultéty, then in book form in 1911 and 1912. Written on Brač, it is, according to Marta Bábiková, his first modern novel, and the first without a Slovak backdrop. A Croatian study published in the journal Hrčak reads in it the portrait of a somewhat idealised rural community, attentive to its moral principles and to the organisation of its families, where the author lived for thirteen years.
Who it is for
A broad novel, rich in dialogue, which transports the Slovak reader to a Dalmatian island.
Prizes and reception
His author's first major novel, written during his long years as a country doctor in Dalmatia.