Postać Litwina w prozie polskiej przełomu XIX/XX wieku
The Lithuanians in Polish Prose of the Late 19th and the Early 20th Century

Summary/Abstract: This article presents the evolution of the image of the Lithuanians in Polish prose of the late 19th and the early 20th century, as informed by the ideological and political changes of the Lithuanian National Revival. The conflict between Poland and Lithuania at the time influenced the transformation of the previous, Romantic image of Lithuania. A well-formed, bilayered Polish-Lithuanian consciousness, modified by the historical works, dominated in the first half of the nineteenth century. Changes in the image of the Lithuanian ethnicity can be seen in Syrokomla’s Wędrówki, where he notes the otherness of the Lithuanian people’s language and folklore. The latter half of the century brought a significant change. Alongside stereotyped characters such as the Polish-speaking Samogitian as a typical (albeit Polish-speaking) Samogitian Lithuanian. The appraisal of Lithuanian characters changes radically when authors subscribe to a worldview informed by an anti-Polish sentiment, for example, in Józef Weyssenhoff’s works such as Unia and Soból i panna. These novels demonstrate a fundamental conflict regarding the role of Polishness in “civilizing” the Lithuanian people, as well as the significance of the Polish tongue as the language of the Lithuanian cultural sphere. The evolution of the Lithuanian character in Polish prose brought about a sharp division between Lithuanians endorsing the idea of the Union and those seen as enemies.

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