PREDSTAVE TOPOLE I HRASTA U „BASNAMA“ DOSITEJA OBRADOVIĆA

Abstract

An interdisciplinary approach has been used to establish the meanings of literary representations of trees (poplar, oak, willow) in Dositej Obradović’s Fa- bles (1788). The poplar and oak are recognized as bearers of metonymic meanings of nature. The fables about trees manifest not only the behavior of members in the community, closely interconnected by food chains, but also enable us to observe the influence of God’s principles in nature. Applying the theological and ecological methods primarily, Dositej’s contribution to development of natural sciences among Serbs (ecology, physics, biology, geography) is pointed out. The relationship between God and nature is presented in selected fables in the wake of theological/philosophical thought, which oscillates between biblical and natural theology.