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Serbian to English: Scientific paper The Bridge on the Žepa General field: Art/Literary Detailed field: Poetry & Literature
Source text - Serbian U radu se razmatraju vrste atributa, njihova distribucija i njihova stilska vrednost u Andrićevoj pripoveci MOST NA ŽEPI. Filozofsko- estetski aspekt pripovetke sadržan u misli da umetnosti nije potreban dodatak, da delo živi samo za sebe - skoro eksplicitno prati prisustvo, odnosno, odsustvo atributa u ovoj pripoveci. Predmet rada jesu leksički modifikatori i modifikacija značenja imenica u pripoveci ,,Most na Žepi“ nobelovca, Ive Andrića. Atributi, odnosno, modifikatori su praćeni na morfološko-semantičkom planu. Cilj analize je da pokaže funkciju, vrstu i distribuciju atributa koja se realizuju u okviru sintagmatskih jedinica – sa imenicom kao centrom, odnosno, kao jezgrom sintagme1. O modifikaciji i modifikatorima, a u vezi sa različitim pojavama na sintagmatskom i sintaksičkom nivou pisano je mnogo, iako se pojave kao takve nisu uvek označavale ovim terminima. Ovako zamišljen rad i istraživanje značajni su sa aspekta deskriptivne gramatike.
Iscrpna analiza i klasifikacija modifikatora deverbativnih imenica na građi savremenog srpskog jezika omogućava njihovo razvrstavanje u precizno specifikovane kategorije i potkategorije u srpskom, ali i proširuje postojeća saznanja o ponašanju imenica sa kroslingvističkog aspekta. Drugi razlog značajan je sa stanovišta daljeg razvoja opšte teorije gramatike: sintaksičko – semantička klasifikacija modifikatora imenica na građi iz savremenog srpskog jezika Kao okvirno određivanje ovog pojma može se uzeti definicija Ž. Bošnjakovica: „Modifikator je opšti termin za jezičku jedinicu koja blize odredjuje, dopunjuje, intezifikuje, jednom rečju modifikuje drugu jezičku jedinicu”2.U Gramatici srpskog jezika u odeljku o sintaksi za rečeničke modifikatore stoji: „Modifikatori su raznovrsne odredbe atributivnog karaktera, kada na pridevski način određuju imeničke reči, ili pak adverbijalnog karaktera, kada na priloški način određuju glagolske reči ili celu klauzu”3 Svaki od navedenih modifikatora vrši funciju atributa jer se radi o zavisnim članovima imeničkih sintagmi. Modifikatorom se iskazuje osobina, pripadanje, količina ili broj onoga što znači deverbativna imenica. ,,Atribut je opšti naziv za zavisne konstituente imeničkih sintagmi. Međutim, najjednostavnije značenje jeste to da je atribut imenski dodatak koji bliže određuje imenicu uz koju stoji. On kazuje osobinu, pripadanje, količinu ili broj onoga što znači imenica uz koju stoji. Najčešće je pridev, pridevska zamenica ili broj, ali može biti i imenica, prilog, pa i čitav izraz”4.Kada je reč o atributima Živojin Stanojčić u Gramatici srpskog jezika ističe: „Atributske odredba reč je ili skup reči koje označavaju osobinu pojma uz čije ime stoje, a koji ranije nije bio određen. Zavisno od vrste reči koja se javlja sa službom atributa uz imensku reč, atribut se deli na dve grupe: kongruentni atribut i nekongruentni atribut (padežni atribut)’’5 . Kongruentni atribut čine reči koje pripadaju vrstama čije se reči oblički slažu (kongruiraju u rodu, broju i padežu) sa imenskim rečima (najčešće sa imenicama) uz koje stoje, bliže ih određujući po nekoj unutrašnjoj ili spoljašnjoj osobini pojmova koje označavaju, ili po nekom odnosu, a to su: pridevi, pridevske sintagme, pridevske zamenice, brojevi. Kao podvrste ovih atributa izdvajamo 1.posesivne atribute kojima označavamo pripadanje, npr. njegova igra 2 u ulozi.referencijalnih atributa najčešće nalazimo neodređene zamenice, pokazne zamenice, redne brojeve: ovaj igrač, neka igra, trećiigra.
Ž. Stanojčić6 nekongruentne atribute definiše ovako: ,,Nekongruentni atribut (padežni atribut) čine padežni oblici imenica kojima se bliže određuju upr avne imenice u sintagmama s njima, a njegovu službu može imati svaki zavisni pade Padežni atributi s priloškim značenjem (mesta, vremena, načina, uzroka, cilja i sl.), najčešće se vezuju, kao i rekcijski atributi, za apstraktne imenice Atributivna odredba (atributiv) ,,Atributivna odredba imenica je sa funkcijom određivanja druge imenice. Označavajućii širi pojam od onog koji je označen imenicom uz koju stoji, atributiv ima dva značenja: atributiv označava pojam vrste ili roda kome pripada pojam označen upravnom (glavnom) imenicom sintagme; atributiv označava pojam titule ili zvanja, odnosno pojam srodstva ili uopšte neke kvalifikacije, koji se pripisuje pojmu označenom upravnom (glavnom) imenicom sintagme; pojam osobine koja se pripisuje pojmu označenom upravnom (glavnom) imenicom sintagme; posebnu vrstu atributiva čine nazivi knjiga, umetničkih dela, listova, časopisa, institucija i sl.’’ Njihova bitna odlika jeste povezivanje iskaza, diskursa.
U funkciji atributa mogu se naći različite vrste reči: pridevi, pridevske zamenice, padežni izrazi, predloški izrazi, ponekad i prilozi, a sve to ukazuje na predikativnu prirodu atributa. „Atributivne dopune ili predloško-padežne konstrukcije po pravilu dolaze posle imenice na koju se odnose (putovanje drumom, čovek proverenog ukusa...)”7. Zamenice u funkciji atributa dolaze ispred imenice, osim prisvojnih koje u vokativu dolaze posle imenice (putovanje moje, lutanja moja, zaleti naši...). „Gramatičko mjesto atributa je mjesto ispred imenske riječi, jer sa njom čini sintagmu kojom se označava jedan jedinstven pojam, odnosno biće i predmet. U skladu s tim treba pomenuti atribute koji stoje poslije nominatora i nazivaju se distingvirati, atibuisati ili postponirani. Postponirani atribut je inverzivni atribut, atribut koji dobija mjesto odmah poslije nominatora (imenice ili druge imenske riječi). Uzrok pojave ovakvog atributa nalazi se u afektivnom stavu govornog lica prema onome što se imenskoj riječi pripisuje kao osobina ili pripadanje. Zato se javlja nuţda isticanja atributa kao pridjeva osnovnog značenja. A to se isticanje vrši inverzijom atributa. Inverzivni atribut dobija ekspresivnu vrijednost bez obzira na to što je pridjev osnovnog značenja.“ 8
Radi lakše analize primera iz Andrićeve pripovetke ,,Most na Žepi“ koristili smo tabelarni prikaz:
U ovom delu rada želeli smo na datom istraživanju ukazati na vrstu reči, konstituenski oblik i funkciju modifikatora uz imenice u ovoj Andrićevoj pripoveci. Kao što smo i očekivali morfološki to izgleda ovako: pridevi, pridevske sintagme, brojevi, zamenice, predloško – padežne konstrukcije; konstituentski: najzastupljeniji su nominativ i genitiv, a po distribuciji: kongruentni atributi koji se najčešće nalaze ispred imenica, ali se mogu naći i u inverznom obliku, čime se postiže ekspresivnost jezika: npr. česma presahla.
U drugom delu rada smo se bavili semantikom i stilistikom ovih modifikatora. Pošli smo od Andrićeve misli izrečene na savetovanju uredništva omladinskih časopisa: „Stil je samo vidljiv, ili čujan, deo naše misli ili našeg osećanja“9, kao i one – o samom piscu: „Kad jedan pisac, u toku pričanja, napusti ton pripovedača, zanemari radnju i počne da objašnjava svog junaka apstraktnim rečima i da rečima tumači i slika njegove poglede i namere, koje se iz njegovih postupaka ne vide, to je kraj umetničkog stvaranja i napora za pisca i kraj umetničkog uživanja za čitaoca.“10
I Bosna i most i Žepa samo su medijumi, kako kaže Mihiz11 pomoću kojih, i uz koje, pisac smešta krupnu arhitekturu svoje misli. Pisac koji je u svom tekstu skoro škrt da upotrebi ma jednu metaforu, jedno jedino poređenje, isto tako je škrt da upotrebi atribut. Očigledno je pisac imao nameru da dâ mnogo veću metaforu, naime, ovde je cela pripovetka velika metafora koju valja odgonetati. Andrić podrazumeva aktivnog i predanog čitaoca koji će umeti i odsustvo znaka protumačiti kao znak. Na putu odgonetanja metafore o prolaznosti, o trajanju, o smislu umetnosti, o lepoti uopšte, pomaže nam i Andrićev atribut, piscu posebno značajan, i onda kada ga smišljeno upotrebi kao i onda kada ga, takodje smišljeno, izostavi.
Atributi u ovoj pripoveci nisu mnogobrojni, ali jesu mnogoznačni. Njihova malobrojnost nije, naravno, bezrazložna. Andrić ovde ne niže nisku atributa, praznog retoričkog ukrasa radi. On – atribut – dosledno prati Andrićevu misao da umetničkom delu nije potreban nikakav dodatak, nikakvo objašnjenje, baš onako kako je smatrao i neimenovani neimar i vezir Jusuf. Delo kazuje samo sebe. I sam Andrć je opominjao da se u ekonomiji reči preobilje lako preobraća u siromaštvo i figurativno tu pojavu imenovao „inflacijom reči“. U tom smislu svako usiljeno dodavanje reči znatno osiromašuje stil. Pridevski (kongruentni) atributi: usamljen, ćutljiv, zamišljen mogli bi biti označeni kao zajednički imenitelji kojima se kvalifikuju i vezir Jusuf – kome se upravo u osami i tišini javila ideja o gradnji mosta - i neimar – bezimen, usamljen i veran tišini svoje misli- i most- usamljen, a svačiji- a i sam Andrić.
Poznato je da je Andrić pisac koji je predano i istrajno razmišljao o rečima. U tom smislu i sam je davao uputstva: „Kod opisa ljudi ili događaja treba operisati samo suštinama“12.Kada u prvoj rečenici MOSTA NA ŽEPI naiđemo na tri pridevska atributa: veliki vezir, žrtva jedne, opasne intrige, onda bi ovo trebalo iščitavati upravo ovako: čak i vezir, ali ne bilo koji, nego veliki dakle, uticajan, visoko hijerarhijski kotiran, može biti žrtva intrige, ali ne bezazlene, usputne, nego opasne, toliko opasne da je dovoljno da bude jedna pa da moć i slava smesta pokažu svoju kratkotrajnost i varljivost. Tu i takvu kratkotrajnost prati zlo i hladno proleće. Ova dva atributa: zlo i hladno kompatabilni su jedan uz drugi, ali antipodni uz imenicu proleće. Ovim kontrastiranjem neočekivanim atributima uz imenicu proleće, zapravo je naglašena ona opasna intriga s početka pripovetke. Odmah po izlasku iz zatočenja, u mesecu maju ,,Život se nastavi sjajan, miran, jednoličan“- atributi, kao nosioci informativne aktualizacije ovako izrečene rečenice, rasporedjeni na samom njenom kraju, čine trostvo kojim se ukazuje upravo na uobičajenu kolotečinu svakodnevnog života. Takav život jeste : sjajan i miran, ali je i jednoličan. Andrić veruje da snaga opisa u znatnoj meri zavisi od dobro nađene pojedinosti. Jedna reč, ili obrt, ili karakteristična sitnica, kao ono metalno dugme na slici, o kojem je govorio Andrićev Goja, često su presudni za uverljivost opisa. Samo, suština nije u dugmetu. Isto tako, kada u opisu gradnje mosta pisac koristi atribute: preostale grede, kamenito, rečno korito od maljeva i radničke vike, teške, borove grede, žuti, limeni trougaonik, olovni visak, kamenita i strma obala, suština nije u stilski uspelom opisu, ili, nije samo i jedino u tome, nego (i) u muci koja prati nastanak istinski vrednog dela, kao njegov neminovni pratilac. A težina te muke ponajviše je sadržana pre svega atributima: teška, olovna, kamenita, strma.
A onda kada delo bude dovršeno, javlja se i prvi ushit, koji, po prirodi stvari bude ubrzo stišan, ali tada, u momentu prvog pojavljivanja, imamo navalu neobuzdanih osećanja koje Andrić, na ovom mestu, obeležava neuobičajeno velikim brojem atributa, kako i priliči prvom ushitu: tamnosivi, kameni škriljavac, beo, gladak zid od tesana kamena, opleten sa svih strana skelama, most vitak i beo, luk smišljenih i tankih linija, nasuprot: oštrom, mrkom kršu punom kukrikovine13 i pavite14.
U nastavku pripovetke nalazimo tek po koji, pridevski, atribut. Ovako naglo smanjivanje njihove upotrebe, prati, u semantičkom sloju, naglo smirivanje prvih ushita. U ovom delu pripovetke nalazimo: neodredjen užas, izvesne predmete, noćne snove – kao zatišje pred navalu misli koje su prethodile konačnoj odluci da se sa mosta izbriše i ime i vezirova deviza: u ćutanju je sigurnost. Potom sledi jedan kratak pasus u kom je iskazano jasno rađanje odluke. Ovde ponovo imamo celu nisku atributa: vezir je sada miran i sabran, a Bosna daleka, brdovita, mračna, život siromašan, štur, opor. Sve ovo uslovljava navalu pitanja o božjem svetu, divljim rekama bez mosta i gaza, mestima bez pitke vode, džamijama bez ukrasa i lepote.
Misao da završeno delo nastavlja svoj samostalni život iskazana je i rečenicom: ,,Tako ostade most bez imena i znaka“ u kojoj atributi bez imena i znaka više nego li i jedna druga misao, kao nosioci osnovne filozofske potke pripovetke, kazuju upravo onu veliku, zahtevnu metaforu koju je i ovde i ovako trebalo odgonetati: delu, umetnosti uopšte, nije potrebno nikakvo dodatno objašnjenje. Ni misli nije potrebno dodatno objašnjenje ako je dobro izbrušena, ni mostu nije potrebna deviza kao objašnjenje, ni Andriću nije više potreban dodatni atribut kao stilsko-semantičko sredstvo da bi nam ukazao na lepotu, značaj i značenje mosta. Dovoljan je samo opis belog, izvijenog luka kao neobične, zalutale, uhvaćene u kršu i divljini misli. Ova niska atributa sasvim je dovoljna da bi se mogao osetiti i mislima dočarati čedan dodir toplog, klesanog kamena.
Translation - English This paper explores types of attributes, their distribution and stylistic value within Andrić’s short story “The Bridge on the Žepa“. The philosophical aesthetic aspect of the short story, which is reflected in the idea that art does need any additions, and that a work of art has a life of its own, is almost explicitly accompanied by the presence, as well as the absence of attributes in this short story. The subject of this paper are lexical modifiers and modifiers that affect the meaning of the nouns in the short story “The Bridge on the Žepa“ of the Nobel prize winner, Ivo Andrić. The attributes, i.e. modifiers, are examined from the morphological and syntactic aspects. The goal of this analysis is to present the function, type and distribution of the attributes which are realized within phrases – with the noun as the head of the syntactic phrase1. Modifiers and the process of modification, regarding different presentations on syntagmatic and syntactic level, have been extensively written about, even though those notions have not always been referred to with those exact terms. The aspect of research found in this paper is significant for the field of descriptive grammar.
Thorough analysis and classification of the modifiers of deverbative nouns from the corpus of contemporary Serbian language allows for their precise differentiation into specific categories and subcategories in Serbian language, but at the same time, it further expands the known facts about nouns from the cross-linguistic aspect. Additionally, it is significant from the aspect of further development of the grammatical theories: syntactic-semantic classification of noun modifiers on the corpus of contemporary Serbian language. The following definition, provided by Ž. Bošnjaković, can be taken into account when considering the meaning of this notion: “Modifier is a generalized term used for a lexical unit which closely defines, intensifies, adds to the meaning, in one word – modifies, another lexical unit”2. The section devoted to syntax in the Grammar of Serbian Language states the following about syntactic modifiers: “Modifiers are words of attributive character, which function as an adjective defining nouns, or of adverbial character, when they function as an adverb defining verbs or whole clauses”3. Each of these modifiers has a function of an attribute since they present dependent constituents of noun phrases. A modifier stands for quality, possession, quantity or number of the meaning of the deverbative noun. “An attribute is a general term used for noun phrase constituents. However, the simplest definition of an attribute would be that it presents a noun complement which closely defines the noun to which it refers. It defines a quality, possession, quantity or number of the noun to which it refers. Most often, it is an adjective, an adjectival pronoun or a number, but it can also be a noun, preposition or even a whole phrase”4. When it comes to attributes, Živojin Stanojčić, in the Grammar of Serbian Language, claims: “An attribute is a word or a set of words which define the qualities of the noun they refer to, and which have not been previously defined. Depending on the part of speech of the word which functions as an attribute of the noun, there are two types of attributes: congruent attribute and non-congruent attribute (prepositional attribute)’’5. Congruent attributes are words belonging to parts of speech in agreement with (that have congruous gender, number and case) the nouns they refer to, while closely defining some of the internal or external qualities of the notions those nouns refer to, or some of the relations, and those words are: adjectives, adjectival phrases, adjectival pronouns, and numbers. The subtypes of these attributes are 1) possessive attributes that define belonging, e.g. his game 2) demonstrative attributes usually represented by indefinite pronouns, demonstrative pronouns, and ordinal numbers: this player, some game, third player.
Ž. Stanojčić6 defines non-congruent attributes as “Non-congruent attributes (prepositional attributes) are case forms of nouns used to closely define head nouns of the nominal phrases, and every word marked by a dependent grammatical case (dative case, genitive case, accusative case, instrumental case, and locative case) can function as non-congruent attribute. Case-marked attributes with adverbial meanings (of place, time, manner, cause, goal, etc.) most commonly refer to abstract nouns, just like nominal attributes (in Serbian: rekcijski atributi). Nominal attributive has a function of closely defining another noun. By defining a more broader notion of the one marked by the noun it refers to, attributive has two meanings: an attributive defines type or gender of the notion marked by the head noun of the nominal phrase; an attributive marks the notion of title or occupation, i.e. relation or some generalized qualification, which is assigned to the notion marked by the head noun of the nominal phrase; the quality assigned to the notion marked by the head noun of the nominal phrase; a specific type of attributives are book titles, names of art pieces, magazines, institutions, etc.” Their important characteristic is that they connect statements and discourse.
Various parts of speech can function as attributes: adjectives, adjectival pronouns, case-marked fixed expressions (in Serbian: padežni izrazi), adverbial phrases, sometimes adverbs, which denote the predicative nature of attributes. “Attributive complements or prepositional phrases as a rule stand after the noun they refer to (a journey by road (putovanje drumom), a man of confirmed taste (čovek proverenog ukusa), etc.)”7. Pronouns functioning as attributes precede the noun, except for possessive pronouns in vocative case, which come after the noun, e.g. a journey of mine (putovanje moje), roaming of mine (lutanja moja), fantasies of ours (zaleti naši), etc.). “Grammatical place of the attribute is the one preceding the noun, since it forms with that noun a nominal phrase which denotes one unique notion, person or a thing. Likewise, there are attributes which come after the nominator, and they are called postponed attributes. A postponed attribute is an inversed attribute, an attribute which comes immediately after the nominator (a noun or another nominal word). The cause for the existence of such an attribute stems from the affective nature of the speaker to the quality or possession of the noun. Hence the necessity of expressing the attribute as an adjective with its basic meaning, which is achieved with an inversion of the attribute. An inversed attribute now has an expressive value regardless of the fact that the adjective has its general meaning.“ 8
In order to make a more simplified analysis of the examples taken from the Andrić's short story “The Bridge on the Žepa“, the following table has been used:
In this part of the paper we wanted to indicate the parts of speech, the congruent form and the function of noun modifiers in Andrić’s short story. As expected, the following deduction has been made, from the morphological aspect: adjectives, adjectival phrases, numbers, pronouns, prepositional phrases; as regarding constituents: nominative and genitive cases are most often used, and according to their distribution: congruent attributes, which are mostly found preceding the noun, although they can also be found in the inverse order, which emphasizes the expressiveness of the language: e.g. fountain dry (česma presahla).
The second part of the paper deals with semantics and stylistics of these modifiers. Our starting point was Andrić's statement from editorial board counsel for youth magazines: “Style is nothing but a visual, or audible, part of our thought or feeling”9, as well as the statement about the author himself: “The moment when a writer, during his narration, abandons the narrator’s tone, neglects the plot and starts to explain their protagonist in abstract terms, and to explain and describe in words the protagonist’s views and intentions that are impossible to be seen from their actions, that moment marks the end of the creative process as well as the end of artistic pleasure for the reader.“10
Bosna, the bridge and Žepa are all only mediums by which and with the help of which, as Mihiz11 claims, the author constructs the vast architectural construction of his thought. The author which seems to be almost parsimonious to use even one single metaphor, or one single comparison, is likewise parsimonious in his usage of attributes. It is obvious that the author had the intention of providing a much greater metaphor, namely, the whole short story can be seen as one large metaphor that is to be unraveled. Andrić presumes an active and devoted reader, capable of interpreting the absence of signifier as a signifier itself. In the process of unravelling the metaphor of transience, endurance, the meaning of art, and beauty in general, Andrić's attribute proves to be helpful, and particularly meaningful to the author himself, both when the attribute is deliberately used as well as when it is, also deliberately, omitted.
The attributes in this short story are not numerous, but they are polysemous. The fact that they are not numerous is not without reason. In this short story, Andrić does not line up a string of attributes just for the purpose of empty rhetoric devices. The attribute consistently follows Andrić's thought that the artistic work does not need any kind of addition, it needs not explanations, which is precisely the same as was considered by the unnamed architect and the vizier Jusuf. An art work speaks for itself. Andrić himself warned that, in the economics of words, abundance easily turns into poverty, and he figuratively referred to that as “the inflation of words“. According to his claims, every ceremonial addition of words significantly impoverishes the style. The adjectival attributes: usamljen, ćutljiv, zamišljen (lonely, reserved, pensive) could be marked as collective attributes used to qualify the vizier Jusuf – who got the idea of building the bridge precisely in solitude and silence, – the architect – nameless, lonely and devoted to the silence of his thought, - and the bridge – lonely, but belonging to everyone, but Andrić as well.
It is a known fact that Andrić was an author who devotedly and persistently contemplated on words. Therefore, he himself provided some instructions: „When describing people or events, the only thing to be operating with are the essentials“12. In THE BRIDGE ON THE ŽEPA we first come across the three adjectival attributes: the big vizier, the victim of one dangerous intrigue (veliki vezir, žrtva jedne, opasne intrigue), than it should be interpreted precisely this way: even the vizier, and not any but big, therefore influential, with high hierarchical position, can be the victim of an intrigue, but not a harmless one, incidental, but a dangerous one, so dangerous that it would take only one for the power and the glory to reveal their ephemeral and deceptive nature. This ephemerality is followed by the evil and cold spring (zlo i hladno proleće). These two attributes: evil and cold (zlo i hladno) are compatible with each other, but they are antipodal to the noun spring (proleće). This unexpected contrast between the noun spring and the attribute that precedes it emphasizes that dangerous intrigue form the beginning of the story. Immediately after the imprisonment, in the month of May “The life continued, splendid, peaceful, and monotonous“ („Život se nastavi sjajan, miran, jednoličan)“ – the attributes, as the carriers of informative actualization of thus expressed sentence, and distributed at the end of the sentence, form a trinity which denotes the ordinary monotony of everyday life. This is precisely what life is: glorious and peaceful, but monotonous as well. Andrić believes that the descriptive power is significantly dependent on finding the adequate particularity. One single word, or one twist, or a specific detail, like that metal button on the painting Andrić’s Goja spoke about, are often crucial for the credibility of the description. However, the button is not the heart of the matter. Likewise, when the author, while describing the construction of the bridge, uses the attributes: the remaining beams, stony river bank full of hammer and work noise, heavy pine beams, yellow tin triangle, lead plumb, and stony and steep river bank (preostale grede, kamenito, rečno korito od maljeva i radničke vike, teške, borove grede, žuti, limeni trougaonik, olovni visak, kamenita i strma obala), his aim is not in the successful stylistic description or rather, it is not the only aim, but it is also in the effort of creating a truly valuable work of art, the effort which is its inevitable companion. The weight of this effort is mostly depicted in those attributes: heavy, lead, stony, steep.
And then, when the work is completed, the first feeling of excitement arises, which, by nature of things, soon becomes pacified; but then, in that moment when the feeling first appears, there is a rush of uncontrollable emotions which Andrić, in this place, marks with an unusually great number of attributes, as is quite suitable for the first excitement: dark grey, stony schist, white smooth wall of carved stone, encircled with scaffolds, a bridge, thin and white, an arch with profound and thin lines; and on the other side, sharp, dark waste full of eastern hornbeam13 and old man's beard shrub14 (tamnosivi, kameni škriljavac, beo, gladak zid od tesana kamena, opleten sa svih strana skelama, most vitak i beo, luk smišljenih i tankih linija, nasuprot: oštrom, mrkom kršu punom kukrikovine i pavite).
In the next part of the story we find only a couple of adjectival attributes. This abrupt decrease in their usage follows, on the semantic level, an abrupt pacification of the first excitements. In this part of the story we find: a vague horror, certain objects, night dreams (neodredjen užas, izvesne predmete, noćne snove) – as the calm before the storm of thoughts preceding the final decision to delete from the bridge both the name of the vizier and his motto: security lies in silence. This is followed by a short paragraph expressing a clear birth of that decision. There is now a whole string of attributes: the vizier is now calm and poised, and Bosna is distant, banky, gloomy, and life impoverished, meagre, austere (vezir je sada miran i sabran, a Bosna daleka, brdovita, mračna, život siromašan, štur, opor). All of this causes an outburst of questions about the divine world, wild rivers without bridges and fords, places without drinking water, mosques without ornaments or beauty (o božjem svetu, divljim rekama bez mosta i gaza, mestima bez pitke vode, džamijama bez ukrasa i lepote).
The thought that a completed work continues to live on its own is expressed in the sentence: “So there remains the bridge with no name or a sign“, in which the attributes with no name or a sign, as the carriers of the main philosophical core of the short story, more than any other thought illustrate precisely that vast, difficult metaphor, which should be construed in the following manner: a work of art, and art in general, needs no additional explanation. Neither does a thought require additional explanation if it is properly carved, nor does a bridge need a motto as its explanation, nor does Andrić need any additional attribute as a stylistic and semantic tool to portray the beauty, significance and the meaning of that bridge. It is enough to describe the white, curved arch as an exceptional, strayed thought caught in the waste and wilderness. This string of attributes is more than enough to feel and illustrate the chaste touch of warm, carved stone.
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