W kręgu czarnego romantyzmu. Inspiracje, motywy, interpretacje
In the circle of Dark Romanticism — inspirations, motives, interpretations
Contributor(s): Marek Piechota (Editor), Julian Strzałkowski (Editor), Anna Szumiec (Editor)
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Keywords: literature; Dark Romanticism; Jung analysis
Summary/Abstract: The collective volume „In the circle of Dark Romanticism. Inspirations, motives, interpretations” is a reflection on the literature of Dark Romanticism and ways of how this movement manifests in works from later periods. Therefore, the research material of the authors of the articles is diverse, and hence, the publication is of a cross-sectional character and allows observing the discussed topic across a wider spectrum. What is a merit of the book is undoubtedly the fact that there have been presented methods of analysis that were not previously employed for discussing the works of Dark Romanticism (e.g., Jung analysis in the context of „Czarne oczy” — „Black Eyes” by Ludwik Sztyrmer) and interpretations of writings that were not previously associated with Dark Romanticism (e.g. the works by Bruno Schulz or Witold Gombrowicz).
Series: Studia literackie
- E-ISBN-13: 978-83-226-3235-2
- Page Count: 317
- Publication Year: 2018
- Language: Polish
Leonard — wampir czy demoniczny sobowtór? O „Sile woli” Józefa Bohdana Dziekońskiego
Leonard — wampir czy demoniczny sobowtór? O „Sile woli” Józefa Bohdana Dziekońskiego
(Leonard — a vampire or demonic doppelgänger? About „Willpower” by Józef Bohdan Dziekoński)
- Author(s):Dominika Szymanek
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:15-38
- No. of Pages:24
- Summary/Abstract:The introduction of the article outlines the issue of black romanticism and gives reason why the concepts of vampire and doppelgänger have been combined with this aspect. The consecutive paragraphs present the definitions of vampirism and doppelgängerism based on „The Dictionary of the 19th-century literature” and works by various researchers (Maria Janion, Barbara Zwolińska, Dorota Samborska-Kukuć among others). There have been also provided the definition of unearthliness proposed by Maciej Szargot, one of the main researchers of the works by Józef Bogdan Dziekoński. This was the basis for building the essential part of the article, that is the interpretation of the story entitled „Willpower” by Józef Bogdan Dziekoński. The aim of the article is to provide justification for making this work the subject of not only the discourse regarding the doppelgänger, but also the vampire, while both of the interpretations may be treated equally, because not only are they not mutually exclusive, but also they are complementary. What is an important element is also the remark that the works by this writer may be considered in terms that refer to black romanticism, because both elements of vampirism as well as doppelgangerism are comprised in this issue.
Jungowskie archetypy a motyw szaleństwa w „Czarnych oczach” Ludwika Sztyrmera
Jungowskie archetypy a motyw szaleństwa w „Czarnych oczach” Ludwika Sztyrmera
(Jungian archetypes and the motif of madness in „Black eyes” by Ludwik Sztyrmer)
- Author(s):Julian Strzałkowski
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:39-56
- No. of Pages:18
- Summary/Abstract:This article presents the interpretations of „Black Eyes” by Ludwik Sztyrmer with the use the tools offered by Jungian depth psychology. What is an interesting motif in the context of the research is madness. Therefore, the author is looking for archetypes that affect the implementation of this motif. Hence, the aim of the article is to examine the dark-romantic text with the method that has not been used so far.
Demony Pana Kaniowskiego. Heterogeniczność utworu Dominika Magnuszewskiego
Demony Pana Kaniowskiego. Heterogeniczność utworu Dominika Magnuszewskiego
(Demons of Mr Kaniowski. Heterogeneity of the work by Dominik Magnuszewski)
- Author(s):Katarzyna Szumska
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:57-78
- No. of Pages:22
- Summary/Abstract:“Demons of Mr Kaniowski. Heterogeneity of the work by Dominik Magnuszewski” is an attempt to address the question: what is the little known, ambiguous, posing fundamental questions, heterogeneous work from 1841 entitled „Mr Kaniowski” by Dominik Magnuszewski about? A gentlefolk’s tale based around the figure of a starost-cruel, Mikolaj Bazyli Potocki, put through the filter of a horror novel, through the use of the conventional Gothic props room (a dark castle, slaughter at the castle, a bloody feast, the ghost of a mistress, a gothic villain and his demonic accessory) allowed Magnuszewski to make closer observations on human nature, rather than just disclosure the dark sides of the Sarmatian tradition. „Mr Kaniowski” seems to be a tale of madness, whose sources should be sought in the passion and the crime committed by the principal character, a tale of fears and internal struggle with one’s own demons.
Umysł uwięziony w sidłach szaleństwa i nieokreślony status ontologiczny we wczesnej prozie Józefa Ignacego Kraszewskiego („Wieczerza Cagliostra”, „Kościół Świętomichalski w Wilnie”, „Śmierć szaleńca”)
Umysł uwięziony w sidłach szaleństwa i nieokreślony status ontologiczny we wczesnej prozie Józefa Ignacego Kraszewskiego („Wieczerza Cagliostra”, „Kościół Świętomichalski w Wilnie”, „Śmierć szaleńca”)
(The mind trapped in the snares of madness, and an indefinite ontological status in the early prose by Józef Ignacy Kraszewski („The evening meal of Cagliostra”, „The Świętomichalski Church in Vilnius”, „The death of a madman”))
- Author(s):Ewelina Justyna Krzykała
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:79-108
- No. of Pages:30
- Summary/Abstract:What are extremely intriguing problems undertaken by the researchers and creators of the nineteenth century are issues concerning an indeterminate ontological status and Romantic madness. The first of the motifs manifests itself in the pluralistic forms of a character of a Jew, the Eternal Wanderer, a doppelgänger or a mysterious visionary-clairvoyant, combining the features of both a man of ‘flesh and blood’ and a prophet playing with black magic. The second one — in a ‘dead for the world’ insane who out of love, loneliness or social stigma falls into the abyss if idiosyncrasy and madness. The purpose of the author’s deliberations is not only to endeavour to distinguish a tuning fork of the dominants characteristic of this type of characters that are inscribed especially deeply in the rite of Dark Romanticism, but also to present little-known juvenile works by Kraszewski. The object of the research comprises three texts out of the early writings of the writer that are the most representative of this issue: „The evening meal of Cagliostra”, „The Świętomichalski Church in Vilnius”, and „The Death of a Madman”, which are included in two volumes: „Inspirations for my friends: a booklet for lighting pipes” and „Literary journeys: fantastic and historical”.
Demonologia w „Ludzie ukraińskim” Antoniego Marcinkowskiego
Demonologia w „Ludzie ukraińskim” Antoniego Marcinkowskiego
(Demonology in „Ukrainian People” by Antoni Marcinkowski)
- Author(s):Małgorzata Więzik
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:109-125
- No. of Pages:17
- Summary/Abstract:Dark Romanticism in its Polish variation is associated, above all, with representatives of the so-called Ukrainian school, i.e. Antoni Malczewski and Seweryn Goszczyński. Ukraine with its historical events and the beliefs of the local population was for these artists a source of inspiration. The article deals with some of these stimuli that we can find in the work by Antoni Marcinkowski, another representative of this group, who was at the same time a collector of folklore. Demonology, that is what we are referring to, was one of the themes of Dark Romanticism.
We frenetycznym zwierciadle romantyzmu wschodnioeuropejskiego — rzecz o najczarniejszych tekstach słowiańskich XIX wieku
We frenetycznym zwierciadle romantyzmu wschodnioeuropejskiego — rzecz o najczarniejszych tekstach słowiańskich XIX wieku
(In a frenetic mirror of East European Romanticism — the thing about the darkest Slavonic texts of the nineteenth century)
- Author(s):Katarzyna Żurawska
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:126-141
- No. of Pages:16
- Summary/Abstract:This text is the introduction to deliberations over an enigmatic frenetic trend in the writings of the nineteenth-century writers, with a special focus on Polish, Ukrainian and Russian authors of the era of Romanticism. What is the basic assumption is to present the trend of frenetic literature, the development of which dates back to the end of the 18th and the first half of the 19th century, and to emphasize within Dark Romanticism the importance of frantic topics that significantly affected the development of later literature of horror, brutality and macabre grotesque. In European countries, the concept of frenezia was ontologically associated with various romantic trends — from the historical to the Gothic and fantastic novel, which depended on cultural conditions. Therefore the analysis of the literary material chosen from the works of Eastern European Romantic artists, and tracing the features (originally developed by Western European artists) of frenetic literature in its Slavic aspect as well as their functioning in the literature of this cultural circle — above all the manner of presenting the frantic landscape, the role of nature, creation of the protagonist, construction of events, absence/presence of God and the conceptualisation of the protagonist’s psyche is the nitty-gritty of this article.
„Opowieści Hoffmanna” — opera czarnoromantyczna
„Opowieści Hoffmanna” — opera czarnoromantyczna
(„The tales of Hoffmann” — a Dark Romantic opera)
- Author(s):Karolina Hołda
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:142-161
- No. of Pages:20
- Summary/Abstract:The article is an attempt at presenting an unusual history of „The tales of Hoffmann” — the opera by Jacques Offenbach, which — through the person of the protagonist, i.e. Ernest Teodor Amadeusz Hoffmann, whose prose was at the same time the inspiration for the libretto’s content — may fit stylistically into the trend referred to as “Dark Romanticism.” The author, while tracing the process of the creation of this opera, examines the biographies of its authors and follows, what is interesting especially for literary scholars, philological turbulences that resulted in the fact that the last work of Offenbach is referred to as ‘unknown’, although — paradoxically — it is one of the most frequently performed opera works. The article also comprises an analysis of the objects and themes associated with Dark Romanticism that constitute the axes of successive opera acts.
O śmierci niecałkowitej i zemście zza grobu, czyli do czego może doprowadzić budowanie domu na cmentarzu. Grób rodziny Reichstalów Zygmunta Krasińskiego i Noc żywych Żydów Igora Ostachowicza
O śmierci niecałkowitej i zemście zza grobu, czyli do czego może doprowadzić budowanie domu na cmentarzu. Grób rodziny Reichstalów Zygmunta Krasińskiego i Noc żywych Żydów Igora Ostachowicza
(About incomplete death and revenge from beyond the grave, that is what building a house on a cemetery may bring about. „The tomb of the Reichstal family” by Zygmunt Krasinski and „The night of the living Jews” by Igor Ostachowicz)
- Author(s):Anna Rzepniewska-Kosińska
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:165-192
- No. of Pages:28
- Summary/Abstract:The article is a comparative analysis of „The Tomb of the Reichstal” family by Zygmunt Krasiński and the novel „The night of living Jews” by the present-day author, Igor Ostachowicz. What is the basis for the comparison is the theme of an underground cemetery, which in the case of the Gothic novel is the family mausoleum founded by the lord of the house, whereas in the modern novel it is Warsaw cellars that are in fact the graves of thousands of those who were killed during the war of Jews and Poles. The buried in the vaults have a decisive influence on the fate of the living protagonists of both of the texts. The article proves that those living characters have been also affected by death. From the analysis of the category of non-fatal death, through the explication of the motives of posthumous revenge, what follows is the description of the consequences of building a house on the cemetery, which boil down to the domination of the world of the dead over the world of the living. Both novels have become exemplifications of early Romantic anthropology of death and its aporia overpowered by the thought of the Romanticism of the forties. The last part of the article has been devoted to late thoughts of Zygmunt Krasiński, who understood death as the proper beginning of human existence. In this context, the writing by Ostachowicz turns out a grotesque, radical development of the vision of the world of early Romanticism — as if no reevaluations of the Romanticism of the forties had taken place.
Ciemne otchłanie młodopolskiego umysłu, czyli czarnoromantyczne inspiracje Stanisława Przybyszewskiego na przykładzie „Nad morzem”
Ciemne otchłanie młodopolskiego umysłu, czyli czarnoromantyczne inspiracje Stanisława Przybyszewskiego na przykładzie „Nad morzem”
(The dark abysses of the Young Poland mind, or Dark Romantic inspirations of Stanisława Przybyszewski illustrated with the example of „Nad morzem” („At the Seaside”))
- Author(s):Agnieszka Suchy
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:193-203
- No. of Pages:11
- Summary/Abstract:“The dark abysses of the Young Poland mind, or Dark Romantic inspirations of Stanisława Przybyszewski illustrated with the example of Nad morzem (At the Seaside)” is an attempt to interpret the poem by Stanisław Przybyszewski with reference to Dark Romanticism. The first part of the article presents an artistic profile of the Young Poland artist, including his interests and social contacts. After that, the circumstances surrounding the creation of the poem „Nad morzem” have been sketched out. The structure of the writing has been presented basing on the classification according to Gabriela Matuszek. In the next part of the article, the question of Przybyszewski’s inspiration with the writings by Romantic authors has been developed in order to introduce the reader to the issues of Dark Romantic themes. The writer’s fascination with the works by Novalis has been also briefly outlined. In the next part, the author of the article has focused on displaying elements typical of Dark Romanticism that appear in „Nad morzem”, and discussed the manner of their implementation. What was the main reference point is a specific creation of nature. Basing on the biography of Przybyszewski, the author has also introduced other Dark Romantic motifs that appear in the poem. The purpose of the article is to recollect the poet’s literary output, which is too often marginalized, and present him as a continuator of Dark Romanticism.
„Był to jakby dzień widziany przez kir żałobny”. Opowiadania Brunona Schulza a motywy charakterystyczne dla czarnego romantyzmu
„Był to jakby dzień widziany przez kir żałobny”. Opowiadania Brunona Schulza a motywy charakterystyczne dla czarnego romantyzmu
(„It seemed to be a day seen through a burial shroud”. The stories by Bruno Schulz and the themes characteristic of Dark Romanticism)
- Author(s):Anna Szumiec
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:204-222
- No. of Pages:19
- Summary/Abstract:The article entitled „It seemed to be a day seen through a burial shroud. The stories by Bruno Schulz and the themes characteristic of Dark Romanticism” discusses a few characteristics typical of the trend called Dark Romanticism in the context of the stories by one of the most outstanding Polish writers — Bruno Schulz. The associations between the prose by this author from Drohobycz and selected Romantic attitudes have been considered, however, what is the core of the essay is the interpretation of Dark Romantic themes, such as a characteristic of labyrinth, wanderer, doppelgänger, and the motif of madness and broadly understood darkness, on the background of selected stories from the volumes of „Sklepy cynamonowe” („The Cinnamon Shops”) and „Sanatorium pod Klepsydrą” („Sanatorium under the Sign of the Hourglass”). The aim of the article is to present Bruno Schulz not as a twentieth-century continuator of Dark Romantic writing, but as an author who drew inspiration from the works of the leading representatives of the trend called Dark Romanticism (Edgar Allan Poe, Ernst Theodor Amadeus Hoffman), thus creating his own vision of literature with the use of the well-known nineteenth-century motives.
Na granicy snu, jawy i śmierci. Inspiracje Edgarem Allanem Poem w twórczości Bolesława Leśmiana
Na granicy snu, jawy i śmierci. Inspiracje Edgarem Allanem Poem w twórczości Bolesława Leśmiana
(On the Verge of Sleep, Reality and Death. Inspirations coming from Edgar Allan Poe in the Works by Bolesław Leśmian)
- Author(s):Joanna Iżykowska
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:223-239
- No. of Pages:17
- Summary/Abstract:In the text „On the Verge of Sleep, Reality and Death. Inspirations coming from Edgar Allan Poe in the Works by Bolesław Leśmian”, I have been making an attempt to analyze the threads that seem likely to have been derived by Bolesław Leśmian from one of the most famous Dark Romantic writers — Edgar Allan Poe. In the course of a detailed analysis, numerous motifs characteristic of the works by Poe have been referred to, and subsequently selected texts by Bolesław Leśmian, wherein one can find similar elements have been discussed. The aforementioned topics include, among others, the motif of a suffering woman, crime, the aesthetization of death or the oniric presentation of the moment of the end of life. Besides, the text does not just focus on providing examples of similarities between the two authors. It is also an attempt to illustrate the very individual approach of Leśmian to the borrowed motives and creative utilizing them.
Kruczoczarny romantyzm. Motywy czarnoromantyczne w prozie Stefana Grabińskiego
Kruczoczarny romantyzm. Motywy czarnoromantyczne w prozie Stefana Grabińskiego
(Raven-black Romanticism. Dark Romantic themes in the prose by Stefan Grabiński)
- Author(s):Paweł Otręba
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:240-255
- No. of Pages:16
- Summary/Abstract:The article concerns the implementation of Dark Romantic motifs in short-story writings by Stefan Grabiński, and above all, the motive of madness. In my opinion, Grabiński, as a pioneer of Polish horror who took inspiration from one of the key creators of Dark Romanticism, Edgar Allan Poe, is one of those authors who should be seen, in the first place, as continuators of the tradition of Dark Romanticism. His works comprise motifs so much characteristic of this tradition, such as the motif of doppelgänger („Problemat Czelawy”, „Na tropie” — „On the Trail”), madness („Pożarowisko” — „Fire”, „Spojrzenie” — „Glance”) or demonism (frequently manifesting in the femme fatale characters in stories, such as „W domu Sary” („In the House of Sarah”) or „Kochanka Szamoty” („The Lover of Szamota”). What is relevant in the context of Dark Romanticism is also the recognition of the poetics of the works by Grabiński and placing it in the historical-literary context, while taking into consideration the fact that the prose by Grabiński has a modernist character, despite the fact that the author wrote during the interwar period.
Powolne wrastanie w przestrzeń w powieści „Opętani” Witolda Gombrowicza
Powolne wrastanie w przestrzeń w powieści „Opętani” Witolda Gombrowicza
(Slow growing into space in the novel „Opętani” („Possessed”) by Witold Gombrowicz)
- Author(s):Magdalena Dudzińska
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:256-268
- No. of Pages:13
- Summary/Abstract:The text discusses the issue of space, or more precisely, the question how private, family, social space and the space of a specific place (in this case it is the castle in Mysłocza) influences the development of the central character’s personality, and how he grows into space. I understand ‘growing into’ both as becoming aware of oneself as a physical whole and the ability to recognize one’s emotions through the prism of Romantic horror, and as becoming aware of one’s surroundings. What is surroundings for both Gombrowicz and the protagonist of the novel „Opętani” („Possessed”) are people encountered in the space of the court or the castle; the encounter with them is at the same time a clash with madness, strangeness, anomaly, possession — which also shapes the protagonist and influences his growing into space. Due to becoming aware of this space, watching and entering it is possible to indicate ever newer, clearer Gothic elements in the novel written by Gombrowicz. In the article, I have pointed out, in the first place, how much gradual growing into space exposes the Gothic character of both the place and the principal character of „Opętani” („Posssessed”).
W Wałbrzychu straszy. „Ciemno, prawie noc” Joanny Bator jako powieść gotycka
W Wałbrzychu straszy. „Ciemno, prawie noc” Joanny Bator jako powieść gotycka
(Wałbrzych is haunted. „Ciemno, prawie noc” („Dark, almost Night”) by Joanna Bator as a Gothic novel)
- Author(s):Marcel Warbisch
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:269-286
- No. of Pages:18
- Summary/Abstract:The work entitled: „W Wałbrzychu straszy. ‘Ciemno, prawie noc’” („Wałbrzych is haunted. ‘Dark, almost Night’”) by Joanna Bator as a Gothic novel is an attempt to face the myth of Gothic. Is it still relevant? And if so, what purpose does it serve? Through the interpretation of the novel, which was awarded in 2013 with the Nike literary prize, I will make an attempt not only to indicate the elements that testify to the “Gothicness” of the narrative, but also to reason about the capacity and significance of this phenomenon in the culture of the 19th century.
Wskrzeszenie mistrzów — drugie, wampiryczne, wcielenie polskich romantyków
Wskrzeszenie mistrzów — drugie, wampiryczne, wcielenie polskich romantyków
(Resurrection of masters — the second, vampiric, incarnation of Polish Romantics)
- Author(s):Paulina Skrzyp
- Language:Polish
- Subject(s):Language and Literature Studies, Studies of Literature, Polish Literature, Theory of Literature
- Page Range:287-305
- No. of Pages:19
- Summary/Abstract:This article attempts to analyse the motif present in culture, that is the character of a vampire who appeared in the comic book „Romanticism” by Janusz Gawronkiewicz. In the first part, an attempt has been made to explain why the phantasm of the vampire became of such great interest to Romanticists, despite the fact that they were fully aware that vampires do not exist in reality. In the second part, I have tried to sketch the main and most important alteration that they made in this character, which makes it possible to locate the vampire in the mainstream of Dark Romanticism. I have also made an attempt to compare Romantic creation with information about bloodsuckers, gathered by folk culture. In the third part, I have been aiming for demonstrating how the vampires brought back to life from the 19th century implement the vampire myth both in relation to the Romantic phantasm as well as to contemporary phantasms, and for drawing conclusions from my analysis.
