CHARACTERS AND TOWNS IN IRENA VRKLJAN'S PROSE

Likovi, gradovi i njihov međusoban odnos u prozama hrvatske književnice i prevoditeljice Irene Vrkljan, preciznije, u njezinoj autobiografskoj tetralogiji, teme su ovoga istraživanja. Iako su dominantne odrednice Vrkljaničine proze žensko pismo i autobiografija, likovi i gradovi također predstavljaju značajnu dimenziju njezine proze. „Beogradski“ i „zagrebački“ likovi, vezani uz Beograd i Zagreb, vezani su i uz autoričino prekinuto djetinjstvo i mladost. Berlin, koji pak sa sobom donosi nove, „berlinske“ likove, grad je stvaranja novoga identiteta pomoću pisanja. Autoričin odnos prema likovima očituje se iz subjektivne perspektive; spoznajući drugoga ona spoznaje samu sebe. Može se uočiti da su likovi i gradovi neodvojivi jedni od drugih te da je grad simbolično mjesto koje čine „drugi“. Književni svijet Irene Vrkljan svijet je „drugih“, apatridstva, umjetnosti i vječnog traganja za smislom. U takvome traganju centar, u konačnici, nisu ni likovi ni gradovi, već (ne)mjesto subjektivne unutrašnjosti. Riječ je o putu od toposa kao grada preko toposa kao lika sve do toposa unutrašnjosti stoga upravo u tome smislu valja tumačiti likove i gradove u prozama Irene Vrkljan.Topics of this research are characters, towns and their relationship in the prose of Croatian writer and translator Irena Vrkljan, more precisely in her autobiographical tetralogy. Although the dominant determinants of Vrkljan's prose are women's letter and autobiography, characters and towns also represent a significant dimension of her prose. The "Belgrade" and "Zagreb" characters, related to Belgrade and Zagreb, are also related to the author's interrupted childhood and youth. Berlin, which brings with it new, "Berlin" characters, is the city of creating a new identity by writing. The author's attitude towards the characters is manifested from a subjective perspective; comprehending the other she comprehends herself. It can be noticed that the characters and towns are inseparable from each other and that the city is a symbolic place of "other". The literary world of Irena Vrkljan is the world of "others", of apathy, of art and of eternal quest for meaning. Center, in such a quest, ultimately, are neither characters niether towns, but a (non)place subjective interior. It is a way of topos as a town over topos as a figure all the way to topos of the interior so it is necessary to interpret the characters and towns in the prose of Irene Vrkljan in this way