Dubravka (play)

Dubravka

Cover for the 1923 edition
Author	Ivan Gundulić
Genre	Drama
Publication date	17th century

Dubravka is a drama of mythological-pastoral content and allegorical meaning written in mid-third decade of the 17th century by the Croatian author Ivan Gundulić. It consists of three acts with a total of 28 scenes and 1,696 verses, written in double rhymed dodecasyllables and octosyllables.

The plot of the entire play is set in the pastoral Dubrava in a mythical, pagan time of happiness and well-being, at the time that by its nature reminiscent of the golden age of mankind. Historians of literature agree that Dubrava allegorically represents the city of Dubrovnik and/or the Dubrovnik Republic as a country with a long tradition of independence and freedom, which cultivated since medieval times. Although Dubrava is some mythical country from the distant past, it represents Dubrovnik Republic because it values freedom as the highest human value, the biggest ideal and virtue that man can achieve and reach during his transient life.

The story begins at dawn, symbolically at the time of the birth of a new day, new time and points of view that come with the birth of a new world. But the expected day, "gentle solemn day", a day dedicated to freedom and its glory and value, comes only once a year which makes all the characters desperately wanting it. It is a day "in which we here make a shrine to sweet freedom", in which the ideals and virtues are above everyday life and its routine, ordinariness.

In addition to real-time, play has a lot of links with the historical background of Gundulić's time. The strongest and most famous link with historical events is the motive of the Dalmatian fishermen who comes from the land occupied by the Venetians, in a free and independent Dubrava, allegorical Dubrovnik, the symbol of Croatian circumstances at the time due to many attacks by the Ottomans, Venetians, Hungarians, Austrians, French and others. Dubrovnik thus becomes allegorical port of salvation for the Croatian people, but also a role model and an inspiration in the fight against the greedy enemies.