Powieściowe obrachunki. Spory wokół rewolucji artystycznej w prozie lat 70. i 80. XX wieku

Abstract

The dispute over the ‘artistic revolution’ in Polish prose of the 1970s and 1980s would appear to be of interest and importance not only from a historical-literary perspective, but also because of its contemporary resonance. The traditions and moments of rift, conflict and agreeance, the nexus between the marginal and the central, all allow to see clearly the historical and political tensions underlying the expectations and realisations of Polish prose. They also make bold the transformations of critical consciousness and the (changing) positions from which critics speak about the possibilities and obligations of literature. A reconstruction of the discussion that took place over two decades makes it possible to see how the literary ‘critical camps’ (conventionally known as the ‘Warsaw School’, centred around Henryk Bereza, and the ‘Kraków School’ under the patronage of Jan Błoński) were formed, and what slings and arrows each drew against the other. Above all, this was a multifaceted polemic involving, among others, questions on the relationship between language and reality, questions on the truth and commitment of literature, as well as the need to revise principle notions and an attempt to establish literary authorities and models. It is impossible therefore to discuss Polish literature of the 1970s and 1980s without reference to this polemic, just as it is impossible to (reliably) discuss the history of Polish prose without a return to those particular literary ‘projects’ and achievements.