Sienkiewicz i Żydzi. Rekonesans
Sienkiewicz and the Jews. A Recognition

Summary/Abstract: It has become a common saying in the history of literature that Sienkiewicz in his literary creativity stepped out from the treatment of the Polish Jews. Though he failed to create an expressive Jewish character in his fiction, he devoted many texts to Jewish problems. In the first part of the paper, the author discusses or lists in chronological order the texts in question (including one unpublished so far), while in the second part – also chronologically – presents the Jewish press opinions on our most popular 19th and 20th century writer, as well as the reactions of the Polish press to them and to the issue generally referred to as “Jews on Sienkiewicz.” An attempt was made to present the evolution of the author of “Trilogy” on the Jewish society inhabiting Poland from the stereotypical picture of “non-productive shady businessmen” living at “our” cost to regarding the Jews as a valuable denominational minority the assimilation of which must be worked on.

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