Czytania dziecięce w sztuce polskiej drugiej połowy XIX i początku XX w.
Themes of Children Reading in the Polish Art of the Second Half of the 19th and Beginning of the 20th Century

Summary/Abstract: Reading has been deeply rooted in Polish tradition and culture. Among the most-popular reading practices of the second half of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century were community readings and oral readings. The oral readings were common for all social class families, and they were a popular method of contact with literature. The community readings integrated participants and enabled individuals to share their impressions with others. Unlike the community readings, silent readings were private and intimate. In the art from this period, we find pictorial representations of different literary activities. Late 19th century and early 20th century paintings portray young readers, engaged both in community and individual readings. Iconography proves an important place of books in the lives of teenage boys and girls, and is a source which complements the documentation of readership in the written sources.

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