Liryczne znikanie: balladowość poezji Gałczyńskiego
Lyrical Disappearance: the Ballad Quality of Gałczyński’s Poetry

Summary/Abstract: The author of this essay analyzes various references to the ballad genre in the work of the eminent Polish lyricist Konstanty Ildefons Gałczyński (1903–1953). The author first examines the transformation of the ballad in Polish literature, in which Adam Mickiewicz’s 'Ballady i romanse' ('Ballads and Romances') from 1822 remains a fundamental text. According to the researcher, Gałczyński is not interested in creating a ballad or transforming the genre. He employs various techniques to play with the genre: creating pastiches, parodies of ballads with a satirical message, and ironic-humorous anti-ballads and non-ballads. However, Gałczyński aims to incorporate elements of the genre into lyrical poems and poems without balladic characteristics. These elements are primarily the element of mystery and the epic element, subordinated to the lyrical 'I'. This use of the ballad element is evident in many works by Gałczyński, including his masterpiece, 'The Olsztyn Chronicle' (1950).

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