The Orasac Villager and the World Outside

Joel Halpern, University of Massachusetts, Amherst

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Reprinted with permission of the author and publisher from A Serbian Village (New York : Columbia University Press, 1958). All rights now reside with Joel Halpern, author.

Abstract

The universe of the Orasac peasant centers on his household, his neighborhood, his clan, and his village. The world outside the village is of secondary importance, although he is very much aware of it and interested in it. Toward each larger and more distant sphere of influence and association, from the relation of Orasac to its surrounding village and market town, to Sumadija and Serbia, to the rest of Yugoslavia, and to the vast world beyond, his feelings become less intense.