Hello, fellow literature enthusiast, and welcome to my blog. My name is Ana Nikolic, and I am currently a fourth-year student at the University of British Columbia, majoring in International Relations and minoring in Commerce. As someone of Serbian and Korean descent, I have long been fascinated by how language, culture, and history intersect to create meaning, and I have always been drawn to literature, art, and cultural expression in their many forms. After taking RMST 201 last semester, I became especially interested in Romance Studies and its unique approach to understanding how cultures, histories, and literary traditions interact and evolve. Through RMST 202, I look forward to exploring the Romance World further, diving into modern and post-modern literature while expanding both my skills and my knowledge.
In defining where the “Romance World” is located, one must first understand the meaning of Romance in this context. At first glance, one might assume that the Romance World consists solely of states that speak Romance languages, including French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, and Romanian, all of which derive from Latin. However, it is also important to consider regions colonised by Romance-speaking nations, as well as areas shaped by large-scale migration and cultural exchange. For instance, while Spain and Portugal are automatically associated with the Romance World, questions arise regarding Latin American countries colonised by these powers, along with the texts, literature, art, and other cultural products influenced by their European counterparts. Taking this into account, former colonies and post-colonial societies should also be considered part of the Romance World, due to their historical and cultural ties.
Given globalisation and the increasing interconnectedness of the world, it becomes difficult to delineate precisely where the Romance World begins and ends. In fact, this ambiguity is the glory of Romance Studies. It is tied to no single territory, belongs nowhere, and finds a place everywhere.
I hope to bring to this course a perspective attentive to globalisation and historical change, viewing literature as an evolving form shaped by fragments from different times, legacies, and cultural encounters. To me, Romance Studies resembles a complex mural rather than a single, unified world: a blending of voices, texts, and artistic traditions that together create a rich and layered image, one that reflects the colour, diversity, and beauty of human experience. This blog will be a space to explore that mural through careful reading, reflection, and dialogue. This is Beyond Language.