Truth as an Ally: Majić on Writing, Justice, and What Remains Unsaid

Author's evening of one of the most prominent contemporary writers and lawyers in the region Miodrag Majić, was held last night as part of the literary segment of the "Bar Chronicle". Majić's prose bears a strong and recognizable literary stamp, a combination of legal knowledge, social criticism and exciting storytelling vision, complemented by the courage to touch on controversial topics. With moderation Maja Simovic, the audience had the opportunity to listen to a conversation about the complex relationship between justice and literature, the process of writing itself, and the places where fiction and reality intersect.

"Miodrag Majić's novels deal with the issue of conscience, how we nurture it, under what circumstances we manipulate it, when we distort it and adapt it to some of our petty interests, but, if we want to be completely open, also to some major fears. From the very first pages of all of Majić's novels, there is a feeling as if we are in some kind of court proceeding," said Simović.

At first glance, the judicial and literary professions seem to be two completely different worlds. However, as the author and judge say, there is a deeper connection between these two professions than one might suspect.

"For me, those two callings coincided somehow by chance, they spontaneously intertwined. In fact, as a writer, I spoke out of the feeling that as a judge I cannot say everything, I cannot reveal everything – even though I see, hear, find out. The calling of a judge is such that it requires expression through evidence. And a lot of things, even though we do not have formal evidence for it, we know that they happened. That remains within us, it settles down as a burden, if it is not communicated to others," Majić explained.

Majić's novels are socially engaged, or rather socially aware, believes Simović. They are much more than just stories, they represent a space for struggle and a call for change.

"Literature is a great medium for this kind of engagement, often unrecognized, especially in our communities. It is usually believed that only mass media, which currently reach a large number of people, have the power to convey ideas and messages. However, a book reaches very far, especially when it interests the reader, when it spreads. I often say that a book is very subversive. Fortunately, our politicians do not understand this, otherwise they would probably ban books, as was the case in some dark historical periods. However, they may not be aware of how far these books actually reach. I don't think they are. They simply don't read them," Majić believes.

In her review of the novel "Under Someone Else's Sun", Simović stated that, in the opinion of critics, but not in her opinion, it is one of Majić's "darkest" novels. The author himself does not consider it to be that dark.

"On the contrary, it leaves a lot of room for light, especially at the end. Although it deals with difficult topics, it questions what we would prefer to leave out of the public's reach. But precisely because it 'pokes' at these topics, it opens up space for different, perhaps brighter readings."

The collection "In the Name of the People" is satirical. The author believes that more truth can be told through satire "only until reality becomes more satirical than satire. And in our country, unfortunately, this is often the case. When real people who lead society become caricatures, satire retreats because it loses its function. However, it remains a powerful mechanism. Making fun of stupidity is the last defense of a thinking person," says Majić.

During the evening, the discussion focused on the ambiguity of the title of the novel "Pelican Island", which has strong philosophical and psychological dimensions, then on the crime thriller "Children of Evil", which continues to captivate audiences, and "The Mine", in which the author explores themes of memory, personal truth and internal fragmentation of identity, which begins with the main character's notes from a psychiatric institution.

The evening's moderator ended by reminding us of a quote from the novel "The Mine": "Truth is a powerful ally even when it leads us to the deepest defeats in life."

"There is no more powerful ally than the truth. Sometimes it pleases us, sometimes we use it to defend ourselves from a more powerful enemy, but even when we are temporarily defeated by what we learn as the truth, it ultimately leads us to deeper insights and, certainly, some new paths that we would not have discovered without it," concluded Miodrag Majić.

Miodrag Majić, born in 1969 in Belgrade, is a judge at the Court of Appeal in Belgrade and a doctor of law, with extensive involvement in the drafting of key laws in the field of criminal procedure and international legal assistance. He teaches at the Faculty of Law in Belgrade and Union University, and through columns, essays and public appearances he is extremely active on the topics of justice, judicial independence and the fight against corruption - all of which he often translates into his literature.