Стојан Новаковић и југословенска идеја

Abstract

У раду су проучени најважнији путеви којим је Стојан Новаковићдошао до својих југословенских идеја и кључни аргументи које је користио приликом њиховогобразлагања. Посебно су наглашени заједнички језик Срба и Хрвата, потом угледање налаичка и грађанска начела тадашње западне Европе, поверење у идентитетску политику итворачку моћ државе и нужност повећања броја становника и проширења територије, у циљусамоодбране од великих сила и суседа.

This article researches the origin of Stojan Novaković’s Yugoslav ideas and thearguments which he used in their explanation. As shown, during his half-century longpublic activities, and especially in the last decade of his life, Novaković was presentingseveral key arguments in favor of the Yugoslav idea. Stojan Novaković believed thatmodern nations are, above all, language communities, and that the key factor for Serbs andCroats coming closer was their common, Serbian, language, which was born as a result ofLjudevit Gaj’s linguistic reform. Novaković then, being a convinced “Westerner”, believedin inevitability of victory of modern ideas of freedom, equality and lawfulness over mid-European religious divisions and class privileges, which, in his opinion, had to lead toconvergence of Serbs and Croats. He also believed in “creational power of state” which, heclaimed, was able to bring different identities together and give them new quality. Finally,he was writing about common interest of Yugoslavs to become united and stronger innumbers, in order to defend themselves from major powers’ and neighbors’ ambitions.