Migrating Texts, Utopian Visions: Searching for Guidance in Uncertain Times (1920s-1930s)

• In Event: Crossing Borders/Border Crossings: Im/Mobility in the Post-Ottoman Balkans

Abstract

The paper explores the migration of texts and ideas showcasing a utopian vision of Finland as a model of successful social development. It traces the trajectories of these texts in Bulgaria, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, and Turkey in the 1920s-30s. The discussion centers on the the role of author, translator, and local audiences in directing the process of textual mobility. The paper argues that such utopian visions were interpreted according to the local circumstances, while at the same time they resonated with concerns common to post-war and post-imperial polities.

Author

• Milena Methodieva, U of Toronto (Canada)