Images of Jews in Slovenian Literature between Memory and Metaphor

A general overview of images of Jews and other ethnic groups in Slovenian culture and folk tradition in general, (particularly in literature from Primož Trubar (1508–1586) onwards), shows that in the history of Slovenia certain stereotypes of Jews were commonplace. Jews were portrayed as the enemies of Christ and Christianity (during the Middle Ages), as money-hungry, money-lenders, etc. Jewish women were often portrayed as being used to luxuries and materialistic. The aim of this paper is to provide a brief history of Jews in Slovenian lands and to discusses the representation of Jews in Slovenian literature. Of special interest is the renowned Slovenian poet France Prešeren (1800–1849) and the renowned Slovenian writer Ivan Cankar (1876–1918). Both Prešeren and Cankar adopt effective and often dramatic stock characters for literary effect and to generate deeper existential and moral meaning in the reader.