Prva Svitlos
First Light (Prva Svitlos)

Summary/Abstract: The introductory poem to Dinko Ranjina’s collection Miscellaneous Poems (Pjesme razlike), dedicated to Miho Menčetić, is discussed in this article. In the poem the author gives a systematic outline of his views on lyrical poetry and discusses the genre’s origin, meaning and social function. His views are predominantly Platonic and are illustrated with the examples from the poetry of his predecessors, Šiško Menčetić and Džore Držić. Particularly noteworthy is his understanding of tradition and even more so if we remember that Ranjina was one of the most innovative poets of his time. He believed that the significance of tradition is not in its influence on metric patterns or images, but on the meaning of poetry and its social function.

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