Unextinguished Potential of Locality. Polish “Lesbian Literature” in the Context of “Centralized” Literary Criticism on the Example of Ewa Schilling and Her Works’ Reception Cover Image

Niegasnący potencjał lokalności. Twórczość Ewy Schilling w kontekście narracji krytycznoliterackiego centrum o „literaturze lesbijskiej”
Unextinguished Potential of Locality. Polish “Lesbian Literature” in the Context of “Centralized” Literary Criticism on the Example of Ewa Schilling and Her Works’ Reception

Author(s): Zofia Ulańska
Subject(s): Polish Literature
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Jagiellońskiego
Keywords: Polish lesbian literature; Ewa Schilling; literary criticism; the politics of location; queer; gay and lesbian magazines;

Summary/Abstract: According to bell hooks, the politics of localisation makes counter-hegemonic prac- tices possible. The article reflexes on tensions between the center and the peripheries. The center here stand for the Polish mainstream literary criticism from the turn of 20th and 21st centuries, specifically in reference to the non-heteronormative literature, exposing the context of democracy tolerating the otherness and strongly valuing the literary works based on their quality, which frequently leads to the ignorance about “one’s own voice” (which Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick finds necessary for the queer perspective). The peripheries are represented by Ewa Schilling – the author who conse- quently portrays Polish lesbians’ existence from 1993 till today. The paper highlights her selected localisations (lesbian and gay magazines Filo and Inaczej, Borussia Cul- tural Community and Seqoja – publishing house founded by her) as well as the char- acteristics of her work. The current “flood” of multiple publications labelled with the “queer” umbrella term, sends the 90s’ literature to the peripheries once more.

  • Issue Year: 2023
  • Issue No: 58
  • Page Range: 157 - 183
  • Page Count: 27
  • Language: Polish
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