Famous Literary Historian and Philosopher Dies

Ljubljana, 11 June

Taras Kermauner, renowned Slovenian literary historian and philosopher, died on Wednesday at the age of 78. Kermauner, who was born on 13 April 1930 in Ljubljana, was considered the authority on Slovenian drama.

He edited a number of magazines, including the prominent literary magazines Revija 57 and Perspektive and was somewhat of a guru at the literary journal instrumental in Slovenia's independence, Nova Revija.
Kermauner often worked as dramaturgy assistant and adviser in film and theatre as well as theatre director, according to the website of the Slovenian Academy of Arts and Sciences (SAZU), of which he was a member from 1991.
Apart from translating from German and French, he was a prolific author of articles and discussions on literary history and theory, cultural policy, film, music, fine arts, as well philosophic discussions.
His life work comprises over 100 books of the project "Rekonstrukcija/reinterpretacija slovenske dramatike" (Reconstruction/Reinterpretation of Slovenian Drama).
Kermauner was awarded with the country's most prestigious award for cultural achievements, the Preseren Prize, which he turned down. Faithful to his rebellious spirit, he stepped from the public spotlight in 1990 and only returned last year.
His comeback was marked by the publishing of his extensive collection of essays and memoirs, in which he wrote about his spiritual fathers, including writer and literary critic Josip Vidmar, poet Edvard Kocbek, author Ivan Mrak, and talked about his contemporaries such as authors Peter Bozic and Marjan Rozanc.
Kermauner gave a number of interviews in the past year and had his own column in the high-brow Saturday supplement of the newspaper Delo.
In an interview published by Mladina in April, he criticised the group of intellectuals who played a prominent role in the 1980s and early 1990s securing Slovenia's independence.
He said the statements of those close to Nova revija that they freed Slovenia were an "unlimited arrogance of infantiles".
He also directed a spike at renowned writer Borut Pahor, who is ethnic Slovenian and lives in Trieste, saying that he was all about "ultra-reductionalism".
Kermauner studied philosophy in Ljubljana, where he stayed until 1958 to teach. After attaining a doctorate on Ivan Cankar's drama works, he started teaching dramaturgy.
Between 1966 and 1969 he was an official of the Slovenian Executive Council, the then Slovenian government in the former Yugoslavia. In 1970, he became the director of the Slovenia's leading theatre company, SNG Drama Ljubljana.

Famous Literary Historian and Philosopher Dies

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