Mythical aspects of Serbian identity

The paper deals with the use of mythical contents of Serbian national identity and stereotypes about Serbs in different kinds of public discourses; publicist. political and scientific. Mythical content and stereotypes are related to 'comprehensive image of the Serbian people', not to empirically testable particular identifiers. Moreover, vague stories about Serbian national being have epistemological priority over unambiguous descriptions of common collective ways of life. This feature of its usage make national myths suitable for political and cultural propaganda. They are a powerful tool for social control and manipulation. Political and cultural elites are reluctant to abandon abuses of mythical aspects in maintaining their positions. The aim of the proposed research is to identify particular abuses of mythical aspects in Serbian public discourse and disclose their historical sources, as well as to opt for a reassessment of Serbian national identity through open and scientifically grounded public discussion. Predlozena tema aktualizuje upotrebu mitskih aspekata srpskog nacionalnog identiteta u naucnom, politickom i publicistickom diskursu, kao i njihov znacaj, prijemcivost i 'odjeke' u svakodnevnom zivotu gradjana Srbije. Ova tema je dobila poseban znacaj u poslednjoj deceniji XX veka, kada je oslobodjeni nacionalni diskurs upotrebljavao mitske motive za legitimaciju nacionalnih politickih programa. Specificnost upotrebe mitskih elemenata u ovom periodu ogledala se u svojevrsnom mesanju diskursa, mitskog, knjizevnog, naucnog i politickog, pri cemu su se motivi prelivali iz jedne regije u drugu bez menjanja znacenja i sistematskog mesta.