Srbija i Demokratija, 1903-1914: Istorijska Studija o “Zlatnom dobu srpske demokratije”

Dubravka Stojanović’s study represents long awaited and much needed research on early twentieth century Serbian history, a period still too often conceived in mythical terms, the most powerful of which is that this period was the golden age of Serbian democracy. The author approaches this view critically, and her book is devoted to demythologizing the image of these years. In her innovative study, Stojanović raises many important questions about the ways democracy actually functioned in Serbia in the early 20th century. The key issue of the book can be described as the changes made to the European model of democracy through its adaptation to the Serbian context.

The book is logically divided into three parts: the first part analyses the images present in Serbia about different democratic institutions (such as the assembly, government, royalty), the second examines the reception of democratic ideas, primarily the ideals of the French Revolution (freedom, equality, and fraternity), while the third deals with the Serbian political culture of the period.

What is sourly missing from this study is some comparative reflection. It would have been interesting and useful to see what kind of parallels can be drawn between Serbian political developments and those of other countries of the region (whichever way we conceive of it). Even so, this book of Dubravka Stojanović represents a substantial addition to the historiography of Serbian history in the modern period.

A longer summary of this work in English, written by the author herself can be found under: http://www.udi.org.yu/articles/summarySD.doc