"Tiju" Jusu and other Sephardic characters - an image of generations and their language in the prose of Moafi

Abstract

Moafi’s prose, even though it is less known than the writing of Laura Papo or Avram Romano, fits very well into the trend of the new Judeo-Spanish Sephardi literature in Bosnia in the first half of the twentieth century. The prose also served two main purposes: it was to make reading appealing to the Judeo-Spanish speakers, and later on, it formed a part of a local strategy for the preservation of Judeo-Spanish culture. At the same time, Moafi illustrated, comically or thoughtfully, the main aspects of change that the small Sephardi community was going through, and which were seen differently by the older generation and the younger generation. Moafi, using symbols and archetypal motifs comprehensible within the community, presented those changes very clearly and in an appealing form. Nowadays the texts also present valuable samples of the language of the Bosnian Sephardic community between the world wars.

Moafijeva proza, iako manje poznata od spisa Laure Papo ili Avrama Romana, veoma se uklapa u trend nove judeo-španske sefardske književnosti u Bosni u prvoj polovini dvadesetog veka. Proza je takođe imala dve glavne svrhe: da učini čitanje privlačnim za govornike judeo-španskog jezika, a kasnije i da bude deo lokalne strategije za očuvanje judeo-španske kulture. Istovremeno, Moafi je, komično ili promišljeno, ilustrovao glavne aspekte promena kroz koje je prolazila mala sefardska zajednica, a koje su starije i mlađe generacije videle drugačije. Moafi je, koristeći simbole i arhetipske motive shvaćene unutar zajednice, vrlo jasno i u atraktivnoj formi predstavio ove promene. Tekstovi danas predstavljaju i vredne uzorke jezika bosanskih sefardskih zajednica između svetskih ratova.