„Absalomie, Absalomie” – Kozacy w „Ogniem i mieczem” Henryka Sienkiewicza
"Absalom, Absalom" – the Cossacks in Sienkiewicz "With Fire and Sword"

Summary/Abstract: Translated from the French by Agnieszka Magrel. The reference to King David psalm allows us to present the novel recording the Cossack insurrection against Polish rule in 1648, as a family conflict. One might see Sienkiewicz’s novel only as an answer to Gogol’s "Taras Bulba." We try to do justice to the manifold aspects of the novel by addressing three levels of reading. On the historical level, the implications of loyalty and treason are examined. The literary and ideological project presents the comparative values of order and freedom, and on the symbolical level, loss and union are at stake. Having travelled through the American “Wild West”, Sienkiewicz was able to recreate XVII century Ukraine and to tell an epic tale of betrayed love, rebellion, and atonement.

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