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Reading for your life : the impact of reading and writing during the siege of Sarajevo

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Ornat Bitting, N. (2018). Reading for your life : the impact of reading and writing during the siege of Sarajevo. Open Information Science. https://doi.org/doi:10.1515/opis-2018-0004
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Description

In the spring of 1992, the city of Sarajevo was surrounded by nationalist Serb troops and bombarded with shells, bullets, and terror for four long years. Isolated from the world, Sarajevans found a refuge and a freedom that took them beyond their circumstances: they read, they wrote, and they survived. This paper examines how these activities impacted the mental, physical, and spiritual survival of Sarajevans during the war. Diaries, memoirs, personal histories, letter collections, and oral histories are analyzed for what they may reveal about the value of reading and writing during this time of crisis. What we learn from these accounts is that even during the most trying times, activities such as reading and writing give us a space for control and self-preservation. This paper strives to learn about the power of literacy and writing from those who faced adversity in war-torn Sarajevo.

Details
Title

Reading for your life : the impact of reading and writing during the siege of Sarajevo

Author(s)

Ornat Bitting, Natalie

UNC Charlotte Affiliate Type

Faculty

Publisher

De Gruyter

Extent

1 online resource

Date Published

2018-01-09

Material Type

Journal article

Genre

articles

Resource Type

text

Abstract

In the spring of 1992, the city of Sarajevo was surrounded by nationalist Serb troops and bombarded with shells, bullets, and terror for four long years. Isolated from the world, Sarajevans found a refuge and a freedom that took them beyond their circumstances: they read, they wrote, and they survived. This paper examines how these activities impacted the mental, physical, and spiritual survival of Sarajevans during the war. Diaries, memoirs, personal histories, letter collections, and oral histories are analyzed for what they may reveal about the value of reading and writing during this time of crisis. What we learn from these accounts is that even during the most trying times, activities such as reading and writing give us a space for control and self-preservation. This paper strives to learn about the power of literacy and writing from those who faced adversity in war-torn Sarajevo.

Subjects--Events

Siege of Sarajevo (Bosnia and Herzegovina : 1992-1996)

Subjects--Topics

Libraries
Reading
Psychic trauma

Is Part Of

Open information science

Volume

2

Issue

1

ISSN

2451-1781

Beginning Page Number

44

Ending Page Number

58

Language

English

Published Version (Please cite this version)

doi:10.1515/opis-2018-0004

Publisher's Version

https://doi.org/10.1515/opis-2018-0004

Permalink

http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.13093/work:58

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