Wątki gnostyckie w twórczości Stanisława Lema
Gnostic Motifs in the Works of Stanisław Lem

Author(s): Jacek Kwosek
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Summary/Abstract: The article presents gnostic motifs in selected works by Stanisław Lem. In hisanalysis, the author focuses in particular on literary manifestations of the concept ofthe world as evil-ridden, the idea of being trapped in the world, the idea of a “faultyGod,” studies symptoms of an ironic or negative attitude towards the human body,and finally – reflects upon the marked presence of anthropological pessimism in thetexture of Lem’s prose. These motifs are discussed both in the context of the rudimentsof Lem’s philosophy expounded in his works and in light of his references tocontemporary scientific theories. At the same time, the author points to differencesbetween metaphysical foundations of Gnosticism and the substrate upon which Lem’sconcepts arose arguing that while Gnosticism is usually an extreme form of metaphysicaldualism or a form of spiritualist monism, Lem represents rationalist naturalismcolored with strong scientistic undertones. In the final section of the text, theauthor emphasizes similarities between Lem’s anthropology and the anthropologyimplied by the doctrine of the Original Sin.

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