Tragiczne i komiczne konteksty terminu Świętej Inkwizycji w polskim romantyzmie. Jeszcze o Auto‑da‑fé. Komedii w jednym akcie i jednej scenie Cypriana Norwida
Tragic and comic contexts of the term auto‑da‑fé in Polish Romanticism. More on Auto‑da‑fé. Komedia w jednym akcie i jednej scenie [Auto‑da‑fé. One‑Act and One‑Scene Comedy] by Cyprian Norwid

Author(s): Marek Piechota
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies, Literary Texts, Studies of Literature, Philology, Theory of Literature
Published by: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego
Summary/Abstract: Had it not been for Romantic poets, the term auto‑da‑fé, which originated from Portuguese and is invariably connected with the institution of Inquisition, would probably be linked in our culture only with Spain. However, Romantic contexts of this term show various associa tions. Mickiewicz refers to it without exception in a serious and tragic mood, fitting patriotic‑martyrological circumstances that heroise his characters. Słowacki enriches it with irony and auto‑irony that may approach the comic, treating auto‑da‑fé as a metaphor for burning his own or – in the textual world – fictional writings. Similarly, Krasiński makes reference to the hypothetical annihilation of his manuscripts. Finally, Norwid turns to parody and proposes its allegorical interpretation to draw attention to the nineteenth century crisis of readership.

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