LITERARY DUO OSMAN-AZIZ

In the history of world literature, it does not often happen that two prominent writers shape and write their literary works together. In all variants of Yugoslav literary creations, such an undertaking was fairly successfully done by two Mostar citizens – Osman Nuri Hadžić and Ivan Milićević, using the pen name Osman-Aziz. Although both writers had their separate literary, historical, journalist and academic works, literary critique, earlier and today alike, has not clearly defined individual contributions in their joint novels and short stories, nor has it unraveled motives of their uniting. In a comprehensive study, Safet Sarić, PhD, attempts to view this kind of literary collaboration in terms of their place of birth, level and kind of education, desires for prosperity and cultural progress of people, and finally in terms of enthusiastic youthful ideological and political orientation. Their individual collaboration in many Croatian journals (until 1894), mostly those close to ideas of political program of Ante Starčević, preceded the later, serious literary works. On an initiative of Hadžić, in 1895, they began to write the first novel, Bez nade (Without hope), which allowed them to be classified in the pleiad of the Zagreb literary circle and Matica Hrvatska. Hadžić conceived the “outline” for the plot of the novel by himself, with the already formed idea, which Milićević later made aesthetically impressive. Hadžič is also credited for the final decision about the content which would be published. The news that Matica Hrvatska would publish their novel triggered a flood of ideas and plans for new literary undertakings written under the pen name Osman-Aziz: Pogibija i osveta Smail-age Čengića (1895), Marijanova rana (1895), Zbirka pripovijesti iz bosanskog života (1895–98), Mearif (1894), Na pragu novoga doba: pripovijesti (1896), Bez svrhe: slika iz života (1897).

According to Muhsin Rizvić, their political activity in the Croatian right-wing movement was at the same time the defense of Islam, which was extremely important at the time because it coincided with retreat of Muslims from Bosnia and Herzegovina from political and social happenings. Nuri Hadžić and his works particularly stand out in this area.

Enlightenment work and animation of the man from Bosnia and Herzegovina, particularly the Muslim, of the time to wake from lethargy and create his own future were the basic motives of their writing. For this reason they did not want to invent new characters but rather “borrowed” them from people, as they really were. They considered the book both the school for people and the political arena and a representative of public sentiment and the general “assembly hall”, which discussed everything crucial which would lead to the final conclusion and opened the door to the future with dignity. Their works spoke with an ardent desire for upgrading education, instructing the unlearned, criticism of pernicious fallacies, condemnation of the local conservative man, who is overcome with the new time and outdated helpless views of narrow-mindedness and distrust, to replace them with progressive perceptions, since the future is ensured only for those who accepted the general-cultural progressive momentum. Osman-Aziz lashed out at champions of the backward Bosnian society, who shied away from anything new wanting to stop what was penetrating powerfully and overwhelmingly. The two of them appeared with new thoughts, attempting to cure ominous ideas about reality among people, dissuading them from emigration, advising them to remain in their homeland. At the time, their literary works were both noted and respected. They were awarded many recognitions, and their activity was assessed as useful.

Ivan Milićević remained loyal to Croatian political ideals, as well as to brotherhood with Bosniaks, until the end of his life. He bravely opposed baron Kutschera about the national issues of Bosniaks: “One cannot pass decrees from the office about the name for a people. The people themselves are the most knowledgeable about the issue”, Milićević told him. Milićević's relationship with Muslims was extremely sincere and he sincerely cooperated with many of them. As an editor of Sarajevski list he helped, as a friend, the already devastated Musa Ćazim Ćatić by employing him in the editorial board. “I was happy to do it, to allow Musa to be worry-free, to continue to write poems and work anything literary. I did not require him to work a lot, I left him freedom to be involved in literary work as much as he wanted ˮ, Milićević would say.

The meaning, goals and motives of their literary activity are best illustrated by the beginning sentence of the first Bosnian and Herzegovinian (Bosniak) novel Bez nade, where they depict a bridge as a multifaceted metaphor of joining differences. However, they also render it by means of another unification, by flowing of the river Radobolja into the Neretva. This sentence speak enough by itself: “Where in Mostar the Radobolja flows into the rapid and furious Neretva, by the Old Bridge, access to water is the best.”

Ivan Milićević was born in Mostar on 23 June 1868, and Osman Nuri Hadžić on 28 June 1869.  Both began primary education in Mostar. Milićević continued education in Skradin and Split. They both completed high schools in Sarajevo, and destiny joined them again during studies of law in Zagreb and Vienna, after which their literary works were published.

Osman Nuri Hadžić also published the following books: Ago Šarić: pripoviest iz prošlosti Mostara (1894), Islam i kultura (1894), Pripovijesti iz bosanskoga života (1898), Muslimansko pitanje u Bosni i Hercegovini (1902), Borba muslimana za vjersko-prosvjetnu autonomiju (1902), Muhammed a. s. i Kur’an: osvrt na historiju islamske kulture (1931), Bosna i Hercegovina pod austro-ugarskom upravom (1938) (co-authored by Vladislav Škarić and Nikola Stojanović), Pripovijetke (Sarajevo, 1980). Manuscript of the short story Tko pod drugim jamu kopa, sam će u nju upasti is held at the National and University Library under the title Tužne uspomene. He translated from Arabic, Turkish, French and Russian. He died in Belgrade on 23 December 1937.

Milićević gathered young and talented writers and journalists around himself. He edited journals Osvit, Sarajevski list, Hrvatska sloga and Pravda. He collaborated with Sarajevo-based Novi list (1942, 1944), Mostar-based Hrvatsko pravo (1943), Hrvatska misao (1943, 1944), and Hrvatski narod (1942, 1943, 1944). He died in Sarajevo on 15 March 1950.