The Philosopher and the Simpleton from “the Imperial City of Shang-hai”: The Status of Early Humorous Tales in the Works of Bolesław Prus
The Philosopher and the Simpleton from “the Imperial City of Shang-hai”: The Status of Early Humorous Tales in the Works of Bolesław Prus

Summary/Abstract: The article presents an analysis of Bolesław Prus’s satirical microstory 'Filozof i prostak' ['The Philosopher and the Simpleton'] from the collection 'To i owo, właściwie zaś:ani to, ani owo, czyli 48 powiastek dla pełnoletnich dzieci' ['This and That, or Rather Neither This Nor That: 48 Tales for Children of Age']. It discusses the manner in which China, as the setting of the story, is portrayed, in line with the 19th-century knowledge and awareness of the remote country. The article addresses the question of the appropriateness of choosing China as the backdrop for events, given its geographical and cultural distance from the perspective of a Polish reader. In addition to embodying a significant concept in Prus’s entire body of work, namely humour understood as a precise and sophisticated literary tool, the work bears the characteristics of a parable. As shall be demonstrated, certain features that are present in this early work evolved and returned in fuller form in Prus’s later works.

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