Famous Poles: Part 4 – Writers
Time for another part of Famous Polish People series. In part 4 I'll introduce some distinguished Polish writers.
We can all agree that literature is one of the most important parts of cultural heritage of a country. Polish literature has a long tradition but in this post, rather than introducing classics, I chose five writers from 20th-21st centuries that are well recognized in the world and which are available in Japanese or English. In many respects their work is deeply rooted in Polish culture and history but at the same time their talent combined with original style and interesting story make their works universal in character, thus understood by readers all over the world. Have a look at my picks below.
1. Czesław Miłosz (1911-2004) Poet, novelist, essayist and translator. Miłosz was born in 1911 in present day Lithuania and studied at the university in Vilnus. He debuted in 1933 with "A Poem on Frozen Time". Miłosz spent most of World War II in Warsaw writing for the underground press. In 1945, he published a collection of pre-war and wartime writings: "Rescue", considered as one of the most significant volumes of 20th century Polish poetry. After publishing "The Captive Mind" (1953), a classic non-fiction study on the totalitarianism Miłosz gained readers internationally. In 1957 he escaped communist Poland and moved to France. In 1960 he was invited to Berkeley University in California where he lectured as Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures for the next 20 years, simultaneously writing and translating. In 1980 Miłosz was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Soon after, for the first time in many years he visited Cracow and decided to divide his time from that point between USA and Poland. His most famous works are: The "Issa Valley" (1955), "Gucio Enchanted" (1965), "Where the Sun Rises and Where it Sets" (1974), or "It" (2000), among many others. Critics agree that Miłosz’s artistic vision was very consistent: he's a realist "who with uncompromising clear-sightedness voices man's exposed condition in a world of severe conflicts." – as Swedish Academy said when he won Nobel Prize. He died in August 2004 in Cracow.
2. Stanislaw Lem (1921-2006) He was the greatest science – fiction writer in Poland and possibly the most popular and most widely read science fiction writer in the world. His books were translated from Polish into at least 40 languages. Lem was born in 1921 in Lviv, which is now in Ukraine. Shortly after the World War II he moved to Cracow. He was a medicine student but eventually he became a scientific research assistant, not a doctor. He began writing in late 1940's but it wasn’t until the 1960's and increase in freedom of speech in then-communist Poland when he became a full time science - fiction writer. The 1960's and the 1970's were the most prolific years in Lem's career. He gained popularity all around the world which resulted in the so called Lem-boom. He wrote traditional science fiction where he vividly imagined technological advances, space travel, and alien worlds, such as "Eden" (1959), "Solaris" (1961), "His Master’s Voice" (1968;), and "Tales of Pirx the Pilot" (1968;). Some of his best works, however, contain dark allegorical and philosophical science- fiction tales, such as "The Star Diaries" (1957;) or "The Cyberiad" (1965). Lem praised science, however, at the same time was in despair about human limitations, constantly questioning the place of a human in the universe. He was a true visionary: e-books and tablets, smart phones, or even internet platforms like Google were all predicted by him in his stories. Few of his books were made into films, e.g. "Solaris" became a movie twice: in 1972 directed by Russian Andrei Tarkovsky and in 2002 directed by an American Steven Soderbergh. Lem died in March 2006 in Cracow.
3. Ryszard Kapuscinski (1932-2007) One of the most prolific Polish non-fiction writer, journalist, photographer and poet, often called "the Giant of Reportage". He was born in 1932 in Pińsk which today is a part of Belarus. During the World War II, afraid of deportation to the East of the Soviet Union, his family escaped to western Poland, often moving around Warsaw area until the end of the war. In June 1955 he graduated in history from Warsaw University and soon after became Polish Press Agency's foreign correspondent. Largely thanks to this post he was able to travel extensively and lived in Asia, Africa and South America. Between 1956 and 1981 he reported on 27 revolutions and coups happened around the world. He was considered a candidate for the Nobel Prize for Literature, although he never received it. Kapuściński was never afraid of danger in order to get to the heart of a story. Once on the spot he lived like the people he was writing about. He approached foreign culture first through literature, spending many months reading before each trip. His books are filled with vivid descriptions and he was hailed by critics for his synthesis of private experience with wider historical patterns and real events, turning journalism into a form of literature. Notable works include "Another Day of Life" (1976), "The Emperor", (1978) a masterpiece about the downfall of Ethiopian ruler Haile Selassie; "The Soccer War" (1991), or "Imperium" (1993) an account of his travels through the collapsing Soviet Union. He died in Warsaw in 2007.
4. Wiesława Szymborska(1923-2012) A poet, essayist, translator. She was born in a small town in western Poland but spent almost her whole life in Cracow. Szymborska wrote her first poem "Looking for words" in 1945 partially as a reaction to the turbulent post-war times. Very significant for her literary career was the volume "Calling Out to Yeti" published in 1957. Other distinctive poem books were e.g.: "End and Beginning" from 1993, "One hundred comforts" from 1997 and "Enough" published in 2012 after the author's death. Szymborska's poems are often full of literary tricks such as ironic precision, paradox, contradiction and understatement. The language is a simple one, yet, the irony, paradox, contradiction and wit enabled the author to illuminate deeply philosophical themes and obsessions. Szymborska had never associated herself with any specific literary group, perhaps that is also why her literary style is very characteristic and easily recognizable. In 1996 She was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. It was "for poetry that with ironic precision allows the historical and biological context to come to light in fragments of human reality". Szymborska, a perfectionist, published "only", around 350 poeams. Whenever asked why she had published so few poems, she used to answer: "I have a trash can in my home". She died in Cracow in 2012.
5. Olga Tokarczuk (1962 – ) Writer and essayist, born in 1962 in the western town of Sulechów. She studied psychology at the University of Warsaw. At first, she tried her hand at poetry but was discovered in 1993 as novel writer with her debut "Journey of the People of the Book”, which was very well received by the critics. The real breakthrough was her third novel, "Primeval and Other Times" (1996), widely considered a huge commercial success and one of the greatest achievements in contemporary Polish prose. The book received the Audience Nike Award, one of the most prestigious literary awards in Poland. Next novel, "House of Day, House of Night", written in 1998 is Tokarczuk's most personal book, inspired by the area she lives in. Her reputation was further cemented in 2007 with the publication of a novel titled "Flights". In 2014 Tokarczuk published an epic and thought- provoking novel "The Books of Jacob" which earned her Nike Jury Award. In no time, she became one of the most critically acclaimed and most translated among Polish contemporary writers. In December 2019, as the fifth Polish-language laureate, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Prize motivation was: "for a narrative imagination that with encyclopedic passion represents the crossing of boundaries as a form of life." Tokarczuk is also a vocal activist, especially accomplished in the promotion of animal rights, democracy, cultural tolerance and climate change. She cites Carl Jung’s psychology as an inspiration for her literary work.
As you can see Polish literature is very diverse and I’m sure you can find something for yourself. I hope this post will inspire you to read it, especially as there is bunch of books you can read in Japanese or English.
Enjoy and until next time! Hanna