TOWARDS MONTENEGRO: A LAND OF GIANTS AND PANTHERS

Abstract

Abstract. This paper problematizes the caricatural presence of Montenegro on the symbolical map of travellers from the contemporary Anglophone world. To depict the contours of this paradoxical presence, we propose a brief look at the romantic image of the country developed in the last two centuries. While avoiding politicizing, essentializing, and self-stigmatization, we conclude that the absence of the country as a real historical, socio-political, and cultural complexity has been conditioned by its long and manifold isolation. We provide examples from travel writing, tourist and media representations, fiction, and film. Our analysis mostly relies on authorities on the travel-writing genre.

Key Words: Montenegro, history, travel writing, fiction, tourism.