“How Cool Was Will Freeman?”: From the New Lad to the Postfeminist Man in High Fidelity and About a Boy

Author(s): Cristina Chifane / Language(s): English Issue: 8/2019

This article aims to investigate the concept of contemporary masculinities reflected in two of Nick Hornby’s novels belonging to the popular fiction genre and generally associated with the New Lad phenomenon. The novelty of the approach resides in the attempt to demonstrate that the protagonists of such novels carry with them the seeds of a transition process to the twenty-first century Postfeminist Man seeking to overcome the traumatic experiences of the past and to embrace the diversity and hybridity of the present. As a consequence, both Rob Fleming in High Fidelity and Will Freeman in About a Boy become exponents not only of the masculinity crisis at the turn of the new millennium, but also of a more flexible paradigm that allows them to acknowledge the failure of the New Lad phenomenon. When outer agents like Laura and Marcus shatter their defensive mechanisms, they can no longer cling to the self-ironical complacency and non- commitment policy of the New Lad. In other words, Rob Fleming and Will Freeman begin to reflect the image of the Postfeminist Free Man who is willing to accept the successive feminist waves and relearn the value of genuine interpersonal relationships to the detriment of a continuous obsession over the concepts of power, hierarchy and gender roles.

“If I return this time I must return greater...” Kunwar Narain: His Reminiscences and Retellings of the Past

Author(s): Monika Browarczyk / Language(s): English Issue: 1/2020

Kunwar Narain (1927-2017), an eminent Hindi poet and writer, in his interviews, introductions to published works and public speeches discusses at length matters connected to his writing, poetry and aesthetics, but is somewhat reluctant to share details of his private life. The article is divided into two parts: the former studies the few and far between references Narain made to his own life in his para-textual writings and the latter close reads four of his poems and a short-story that refers to his trips to Poland bringing out autobiographical motifs.

“Kitabi-Dədə Qorqud” dastanının dilində keyfiyyət anlayışı ifadə edən vasitələr

Author(s): Abdulhüseynli Nərmin Allahverdi / Language(s): Azerbaijani Issue: 9/2019

The article is devoted to the analysis of means of expression of the quality concept developed by Kitabi-Dede Gorgud. Here it becomes clear that quality is expressed not only by adjectives, but also by different ways of expression. Simultaneously, the word and phrase of the qualitative composition, accessible to the language of the writing, is apparent. The author tries to prove these assumptions on the basis of examples.

“The Reason for War is War”: Western and Eastern Interrogations of Violence in Michael Ondaatje’s Anil’s Ghost

Author(s): Shoshannah Ganz / Language(s): English Issue: 2/2020

Michael Ondaatje’s Anil’s Ghost (2000) is set in civil war-torn Sri Lanka. This contemporary violent moment becomes a rupture through which the writer interrogates the division between Western and Eastern ways of approaching a violent situation. This essay sets out to investigate historical instances of violence and justifications for violence in the Buddhist context. The essay then turns to Buddhist scholars’ contemporary critical examination of violence and war in light of the teachings of ancient Buddhist texts. Then, having established the Buddhist history and contemporary debate around violence and war, the essay explores how Ondaatje comments on this history through the contemporary moment of civil war in Sri Lanka. The essay argues that rather than illustrating the need for a purer Buddhism or the separation between the political and the religious, as some scholars have argued in relation to Anil’s Ghost, according to Ondaatje, the only way to approach the problem of violence with any hope of reaching understanding is through appreciating the different ways of knowing offered by the East and the West.

“WHAT MATTERS IS THAT THE NOVEL GETS FINISHED”: WRITING HOPE IN EMNA RMILI’s SHATT LARWAH (THE SPIRITS’ BEACH)

Author(s): Imene Chaabane Bennani / Language(s): English Issue: 29/2021

Inspired by researches from the fields of psychology and feminist theory, this paper intends to discuss the theme of hope in Emna Rmili’s Sahtt Larwah (The Spirits’ Beach) based on a close reading of the novel’s chapters and on its open ending. In fact, both characterization and symbolism help unveil signs of hope which counter the theme of despair and the intimations of failure recurrent in some substantial parts of the novel. Our reading refers to the different chapters in the novel with a particular focus on the ending as a fundamental part of the book, replete with symbols and significations. As the novel unfolds, the theme of despair is highlighted through the characters’ accounts of their disappointing journey to find a release from misunderstanding and persecution. Yet, notwithstanding the elements of intrigue and elusive meaning in the ending, there are conspicuous elements that can be read as promising signs of hope.

“When they praise your lips Bayrām’s verses are the water of life” Bayrām Khān’s Persian and Turkish ghazals

Author(s): Benedek Péri / Language(s): English Issue: 4/2019

The present paper aims at a comparative analysis of the Persian and Turkish (Chaghatay) ghazals of Bayrām Khān, a Mughal official, who was one of the most influential characters during the initial phase of Akbar’s reign (1556–1605). Like many noblemen who tried to follow the legacy of their Timurid predecessors, Bayrām Khān composed poetry in order to demonstrate that he was educated, erudite and cultured. His Persian and Chaghatay poems and the poetic strategies he applied provide the modern reader with an opportunity to get aglimpse of the cultural background of a Turko-Mughal official, his personality and worldview.

“Жития пророков” Абу Исхакa ас-Салаби как источник статьи “Посольство Исы в Антиохию” славяноязычных литовско- татарских китабов

Author(s): Sergey Yurievich Temchin / Language(s): Russian Issue: 1/2019

The author argues that the Ruthenian text known as The Embassy of Isa to Antioch and written using the Arabic script in manuscript kitabs produced by the Tatars of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania is an abbreviated version of a chapter from the Lives of the Prophets by Abu Ishak Ahmad ibn Muhammad al-Thalabi (died 1035), the famous Sunni Islam theologian, historian, and mufassir who worked in Nishapur (Northeastern Iran). The Ruthenian text is reproduced in a Latin transliteration alongside the English translation of the corresponding chapter of the Arabic treatise.

”LJUDI NA SUNCU” GHASSAN KANAFANI

Author(s): Tatjana Paić-Vukić / Language(s): Croatian Issue: 46/1997

The novel "Men in the Sun” by the Palestinian writer Gassân Kanafini dramatizes the attempt of a group of Palestinian refugees to enter Kuwait illegally, hidden in an empty water tank and their death at the border Crossing. The novel has been subject to many, mostly allegoric interpretations based on linking the text with its historical context. It was understood as a sharp criticism of the Arab world’s attitude toward the Palestinians in a decade follow in g their plight from their homeland. As for the stylistic features of the novel, there are some differences in the critics’ opinions. Some consider it a traditional realistic novel, while others place it in the stream of modernism inspired by the great Anglo-American modernistic works. By the time of its writing the novel stands on the border between the two important phases of the A rabic novel. I. e. at the point where the traditional realism which dominated in tire fifties is being pushed aside by experimental literary devices. Its main characteristics - mimesis, referentiality, psychological and social motivation etc., are inherent to realistic fiction, but it bears many devices which break with the narrative tradition of the fifties. These are: the direct interior mono lo gue in which the inner experience of the fictional character is presented without the authorial mediation, free indirect speech - third-person narration which transmits the thoughts/speech of the character, subjective experience, the past and the present blend in the principle of associations and without authorial interventions and the limitation of the narrator’s omniscience in the point of culmination.

„A sprawiedliwy, choćby umarł przedwcześnie, znajdzie odpoczynek” (Mdr 4,7)

Biblia o niespodziewanej chwili śmierci i potrzebie gotowości na spotkanie z Panem

Author(s): Tomasz Maria Dąbek OSB / Language(s): English,Polish Issue: 22/2018

The unexpected death of a young man is not meaningless to a Christian. Although in the Old Testament, longevity was regarded as a consequence of a good life, God’s reward for executing justice (see e.g. Ex 20:12; Dt 5:16.33; 11:8.21; Si 1:12.20), the Bible teaches about the relative value of life on the earth and blessing of the deceased young servants of God (see e.g. Si 18:8-10; Ws 1:6.8; 2.1.6.21-23; 3:1-3.9-11). Sudden death was considered as a God’s punishment (see e.g. Num 11:1; 14:37; 16:21.31-35; Dt 28:20; Ps 78:33; Jr 28:17; Ezk 11:13). The temporal prosperity of sinners is an expression of God’s patience, who calls for conversion and will judge everyone (Ml 2:17–3.2.14-20). Christ calls us to be ready to meet him (Matthew 24:42-44; Luke 12:39; Mt 25:13; 24:45-51; Luke 12:41-48). Just as nobody except the Father in heaven knows the moment of the second coming of Christ (Mark 13:28-37), so no one knows the moment of his death. The apostles encourage perseverance, vigilance, and trustful expectation of the end of earthly life, which is only a stage on the way to God (see Acts 20:28-31; Ephesians 6:18-20; Colossians 4:2; 1 Th 5:5-8; 2Tm 4:5; Heb 13:17; 1 P 5:8; Rv 3:3; 16:15; Ph 3:12-14; 2 Tm 4:6-8; Rm 14:8). We trust that many of our young deceased can already enjoy the reward for their good lives and works.

„Ale właściwie dlaczego zawsze miałoby się dziać tak, jakeśmy do tego przywykli?”. Reprezentacja zmian klimatu w serii o Muminkach Tove Jansson w perspektywie studiów nad jedzeniem

Author(s): Michał Czajkowski / Language(s): Polish Issue: 2/2020

The aim of this article is to speculate on how in her Moomin series (1945–1970) Tove Jansson presents the climate change occurring in her fictional world through the catastrophic scenes and those suggesting that a more long-term process is involved in shaping the narrative. The author of the paper argues that the amount, quality, and diversity of available food become a “language” which allows talking about the phenomenon from beyond the characters’ everyday experience. The family’s fates are thus positioned in a wider context, and the uncunny is shown through nutrition habits, which perform an important role in Moomins’ lives. Jansson using a family saga form shows how the narration about climate change as a process, not particular events, can be created.

„Kobiety fenickie” Lucjusza Anneusza Seneki. Opracowanie monograficzne

Author(s): Tomasz Sapota,Iwona Słomak / Language(s): Polish

The book is comprised of two parts. In the first part, apart from a general introduction into Seneca’s drama and its early reception, the questions of the title and the composition of Phoeni-cian Women are addressed anew and thoroughly discussed. The authors put forward their own interpretation of these problems accentuating the ties linking the play and the tradition of the Roman declamatory rhetoric. The second part contains a detailed commentary on the Seneca’s drama. The appendix includes a new critical edition of Phoenissae and a Polish translation of the play.

„Księgi Justynine”. O biografii Justine Frank

Author(s): Lena Magnone / Language(s): Polish Issue: 35/2019

The article is devoted to the biography of Justine Frank (1900-1943), a marginalized member of the surrealist movement, a painter and writer who combined Judaism with pornography, a critic of the Zionist project who tragically died in Palestine. Written by an Israeli artist and an expert on the interwar avant-garde, Roee Rosen, it is not only an artistic provocation – a part of a larger experiment in the field of the so-called parafiction also including editions of Frank’s novel Sweet Sweat and exhibitions of her paintings – but also an interesting statement in the discussion on the possibilities and limitations of feminist criticism, as it points out the problem of fabrication of the indispensable precursors.

„Len” Hansa Christiana Andersena — opowieść fantastyczna o roślinie?

Author(s): Ewa Ogłoza / Language(s): Polish Issue: 2/2020

The article discusses The Flax, a fantasy tale by Hans Christian Andersen. In my reading, I focus on details of the tale’s text. I point out various contexts that expand and diversify the reading of the tale, such as: cultural, religious, biblical, artistic, literary and cinematic ones.

„NAJPIERW RĘKA LEWA, POTEM RĘKA LEWA”. TŁUMACZ NORWESKICH POWIEŚCI KRYMINALNYCH WOBEC BŁĘDÓW W TEKŚCIE ORYGINALNYM

Author(s): Karolina Drozdowska / Language(s): Polish Issue: 40/2020

Norwegian crime fiction is a genre which has gained enormous popularity among readers around the world over the past several years, and this creates a greater demand for translation of this kind of literature. The purpose of this text is to take a closer look at mistakes in Norwegian source texts a translator has to face when working with this genre. The article gives a short summary of potential causes of these mistakes, attempts to categorize them and describes possible ways of correcting them. The main argument is that the translator’s role and identity change in this process, as the translator often has to perform the tasks of an additional editor or proofreader. The crime novels analyzed here are: Blod i dans [Dance with the Devil] by Gard Sveen, Møt meg i paradis [Meet me in Paradise] by Heine Bakkeid and Alt er mitt [Everything is Mine] by Ruth Lillegraven.

„Nem éppen könnyű dolog...” Péterfy Jenő írása Henrik Ibsenről

Author(s): Magdolna Karsay / Language(s): Hungarian Issue: 1-2/2005

Jenő Péterfy was the first Hungarian critic who wrote about Ibsen’s two plays presenting the famous playwright to the Hungarian readers in 1887, when the Norwegian author’s works weren’t translated into Hungarian. Péterfy intended to familiarize the Hungarians with Ibsen’s art. This study analyses Péterfy’s Ibsen-portrait against the background of the critic’s drama- and tragedy concept. Péterfy’s responsiveness to modern literature, his vast knowledge of dramatic literature made him not only realize Ibsen’s greatness, but understand the possible impediments arising during the reception of his works. Péterfy’s writing is an invitation to read Ibsen’s plays, to think together with the critic whose aim is to help the reader in the process of discovering Ibsen.

„Oddać Césaire’owi, co cesarskie”. O pomijanych interpretacjach głosów postkolonialnych

Author(s): Agata Mrowińska / Language(s): Polish Issue: 3/2019

This article examines the problem of interpretation of literature classified as postcolonial by Polish and European literary criticism along with the issue of giving voice to authors from the former colonies. The public image and the work of one of the most eminent authors of this kind of literature, the Martinique poet and politician Aimé Césaire, serves as an example. As a well-known representative of the négritude movement in the humanities, he became a victim of the concept that he himself created – an ideological, simplified understanding, popularized by other great figures of this movement, introduced a pattern that became obligatory when reading Césaire’s works. By proposing a rereading of the epic Notebook of a Return to the Native Land, the article attempts to overcome earlier analyses and the limitations of existing translations in order to accurately represent the voice that is inscribed into the text.

„Pamiętnik spisany w smutku” – kategoria han w autobiograficznej narracji damy Hong Hye-gyŏng

Author(s): Anna Piwowarska / Language(s): Polish Publication Year: 0

The following article focuses on Hanjungnok, the memoir of lady Hong Hyegyŏng. A tool used for its interpretation is a psychological literary category of han. The memoir, created in the late 18th and early 19th century, is worth the attention given to it, especially due to its status as an exemplary Korean classic writing, as well as in connection with feminist issues. The author of the book was a witness, as well as a participant of the dramatic happenings that befell the court, which ended in the sentencing to death of her mentally ill husband and heir to the throne. In her memoir she describes not only her own experiences regarding the pivotal moments of the court tragedies, but also the events proceeding and following them. The narration of lady Hong Hye-gyŏng is the documentation of suffering and all of the ever-changing emotions connected to the category of han. It describes the search for reconciliation with one’s fate, explanation of contradictory arguments and opposing values, all in hope of achieving order and inner harmony, which proved to be difficult. Confucian injunctions forbade women – even ladies of the court, the possibility of freedom of expression. Especially in the face of the sovereign, who at the same time held the role of the ultimate judge. That is why, looking at Hanjungnok nowadays, one could treat it as a description of the breakdowns, frustrations and helplessness of a voiceless witness of the events unfurling. All of which makes the text of Hanjungnok not only a literary representation of a court tragedy, but first and foremost an in depth panorama of the inner experiences of the female author.

„Piękna Kreolka”. O Maryse Condé

Author(s): Józef Kwaterko / Language(s): Polish Issue: 779/2020

„Pisarka mądrości”. O Anne Carson

Author(s): Maciej Topolski / Language(s): Polish Issue: 779/2020

„Przysługa oddana literaturze polskiej”, czyli o związkach Katherine Mansfield z Polską

Author(s): Joanna Sobesto / Language(s): Polish Issue: 36/2018

The paper presents the Polish circulation of Katherine Mansfield’s poem To Stanislaw Wyspiański – the only piece of poetry written by Mansfield which was translated into Polish thus far. Written in 1910, the poem was translated three times: by Floryan Sobieniowski in 1910, by Beata Obertyńska in 1958 and by Zbigniew Lisowski in 1968. The analysis of contexts in which the Polish translations were created, published and republished, along with the interpretation of their paratexts, demonstrates that Polish recipients and the very translators were more interested in Wyspiański – the hero presented in the poem – than in Mansfield herself. Throughout decades, very little attention has been paid to the interpretation of the poem. Polish scholars and literary critics were interested in investigating the circumstances in which Mansfield encountered Polish culture in general and learnt about Wyspiański, the great artist from Kraków, in particular. Their convictions and beliefs can fruitfully be interpreted by the Translation History scholar as a sign of changes in the cultural and political situation in Poland. Moreover, the translators’ attitude – especially the one presented by Sobieniowski – can successfully be analyzed from the perspective of Translator Studies.