The Features of patriotism in XIX century selected poetry book „Lithuanian Songs, Collected From Everywhere“

Abstract

When speaking about the period of the Lithuanian Book Ban (1864–1904), we often limit ourselves to book publishing in Minor Lithuania and to the phenomenon of book smuggling. On a much smaller scale, however, Lithuanian books were also being published within Lithuanian communities in the United States. In this article a book of collected poems, Lietuviszkos dainos, isz visur surinktos (“Lithuanian Songs, Collected from Everywhere”), published in the U.S. during the Book Ban time, is examined.

This book was prepared and published in 1893 by the notable U.S. publisher of Lithuanian books Juozas Paukštys and the priest Aleksandras Burba. It consists of Lithuanian verses of highly diverse character. Following a popular Romantic tradition, all poetry works in this book are referred as “songs.” The structure of the collection reflects not only the diversity of nineteenth-century Lithuanian poetry but also the compilers’ careful consideration of their reader and unique nationscape.

The article explores questions such as how significant the socio-political context is to the specificity of the poetry; how the poetic image of nation can change in light of the values declared in the works that respond to social influences and needs; in what forms national identity and patriotism are expressed in the poetry; and how the compiler’s personality affects the content and structure of „Lithuanian Songs“. The concept of nationality and patriotism, especially in poetry, is exceptionally polysemous and often requires additional explanation. It is further clarified through the notions of the poetic landscape and civic nation, which have already been used in previous scholarly studies.