Women's Place in Nation-Building: Ana Katarina Zrinski in Croatian Literature

• In Event: Gender and Post-Imperial Legacy in Early 20th Century East and Southeast Europe

Abstract

Ana Katarina Zrinski’s (c. 1625–1673) portrayal in Croatian literature offers a case study of gender and nationalism, particularly the literary mythologization of women. As a noblewoman and poet, Zrinska challenged traditional gender norms by participating in political resistance. In the 20th century, however, she is portrayed as a villain who drags her husband and his brother to their tragic death. In this portrayal, instead of being silenced (as suggested by the "madwoman in the attic" archetype), Zrinska becomes hypervisible as a dangerous conspirator.
In this presentation, I will analyze the literary figurations of Zrinska as a political and sacrificial actor. By depicting Zrinska as the origin of the conspiracy, literature repeatedly reinforces stereotypes of political women as emotional, impulsive, and dangerous when involved in politics. When Zrinska is portrayed in literature as a malicious instigator, it suggests that Croatian literary memory struggled interpretating a noblewoman who wielded political power, resulting in her being portrayed as either a tragic victim or a dangerous seductress.

Author

• Matea Magdić, U of Zagreb (Croatia)