-
extracted text
-
Sprostowania do numeru litewskiego
1. Z noty o p. C z e s ł a w i e O k i ń c z y c u w y n i k a , iż jest on
r e d a k t o r e m naczelnym „ Z n a d W i l i i " . Faktycznie jest j e d
g r a n i c ę . Bardzo przepraszamy za ten fakt Pana Profesora
i
Czytelników.
n y m z założycieli pisma, p o ł o ż y ł dla jego powstania wielkie
(A.J.)
zasługi, ale nie jest jego redaktorem. „ N a c z e l n y m " w p i ś m i e
jest od pierwszego n u m e r u p. R o m u a l d M i e c z k o w s k i . Z e s p ó ł
redakcyjny „ Z n a d W i l i i " liczy 3 osoby.
2. D o art. p. P a ł w a Ł a d y k o w s k i e g o i Andrzeja Czajkows
kiego w k r a d ł y się n a s t ę p u j ą c e
P o n i ż e j p u b l i k u j e m y list w tej sprawie, skierowany
redakcji przez A u t o r a :
błędy:
do
Redakcja „ K o n t e k s t ó w "
I n s t y t u t Sztuki P A N
s. 60, szpalta 2, wiersz 7 od g ó r y . Jest 10-20 ha, w i n n o zaś
b y ć 10—40 ha.
s. 6 1 , szpalta
2,
wiersz 7 od
dołu.
k i l k a n a ś c i e " , lecz „ o k i l k a
Winno
być
nie
„o
kilometrów".
s. 63, szpalta 1, p o c z ą t e k drugiego a k a p i t u w i n i e n b r z m i e ć :
„ W s p ó ł c z e ś n i e ma miejsce zjawisko renesansu n a u k i
j ę z y k a polskiego w bardzo w ą s k i m gronie m ł o d z i e ż y ,
k t ó r e j korzenie w y w o d z ą się ze ś r o d o w i s k a
zycznych
Zniekształceniu
polskoję
laudańczyków.
uległo
nazwisko
autora
zdjęć.
Winno
b r z m i e ć : M a r e k Skorupski.
3. W
tekście
p.
Tamary
Gordon
znalazło
się
zdanie
s u g e r u j ą c e , j a k o b y w W i l n i e d o - w o j e n n y m b y ł o k i l k a koedu
kacyjnych szkół ż y d o w s k i c h .
W istocie była t y l k o jedna.
Błąd w y n i k n ą ł ze złego odczytania zapisu r o z m o w y z A u t o
rką.
4. P o w a ż n y m b ł ę d e m b y ł o p r z e s ł a n i e do s k ł a d u zamiast
W numerze 3-4/1993 „ K o n t e k s t ó w " u k a z a ł a się redakcyj
na wersja mojego a r t y k u ł u My i oni. P r o s z ę p r z y j ą ć wyrazy
zdecydowanego sprzeciwu wobec d o k o n a n i a bez mojej wie
dzy zmian w przekazanym Redakcji tekście. M . i n . d o ł ą c z e
nie z a k o ń c z e n i a , w ł ą c z e n i e z d a ń , k t ó r y c h nie n a p i s a ł e m ,
z m i a n ę p r o p o n o w a n y c h cezur w historii s t o s u n k ó w p o l
sko-litewskich ( w i n n o b y ć : 1. wojen; 2. z b l i ż a n i a się; 3.
w s p ó l n e j Rzeczypospolitej; 4. p o r o z b i o r o w y , ale t y l k o po
lata 80-te X I X w i e k u ; 5. odradzania się n a r o d u litewskiego
i d w u p a ń s t w n i e p o d l e g ł y c h , R e p u b l i k i Litewskiej oraz
Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej po ich wejście w o r b i t ę Z S R R ; 6.
poradziecki.). Z m i e n i o n a z o s t a ł a w y m o w a p o s z c z e g ó l n y c h
a k a p i t ó w ( m . i n . o d n o s z ą c y c h się do r o l i polskiego duchowie
ń s t w a w L i t w i e i „ l i t e w s k i e j " p o l i t y k i r z ą d ó w I I I Rzeczypos
politej). Z osobna, c h o ć nie na ostatnim miejscu, w y m i e n i ć
trzeba z m i a n ę k o n s t r u k c j i a r t y k u ł u .
drugiej, poprawionej wersji a r t y k u ł u p. profesora Wisnera
- egzemplarza z sugestiami redaktora tekstu, nie uzgodnione
z Autorem. Wynikło
to na
skutek wyjazdu redaktora
S U M M A R Y
O F
S t e f a n M o r a w s k i ON P H I L O S O P H I C A L S U B - S T R U C T U R E
O F ECO'S " F O U C A U L T ' S P E N D U L U M "
The essay consists of four sections. The first lays down which problems
wil I be dealt with and how the author will proceed. Two next are of seminal
character. In the second the attempt is made to explain what can be
understood by philosophical substructure of any literary work. A triangle
of interpretive prossibilities is presented: a) extracting a set of convictions
with regard to the reality grasped on the whole - which can be
acknowledged as philosophical b) opposing the artistic worldview, always
equivocal at most displaying different competing philosophies to genuine
philosophizing because the former only put questions whereas the latter
provides answers which claim to be universally binding, c) blurring the
distinction between literature lud philosophy altogether (the postmodern
strategy). The author contends that a) and b) are applicable to „Foucaulfs
Pendulum". Actually b) makes possible the interpretation in the sense of a).
If b) is taken as the proper approach, no clear philosophy results from this
novel. Both logos and mythosare suspect, any generalizing and totalizing of
the world vision should be objected to. If a) is admitted as the proper
perspective, either Belbo's critical rationalism or Diottalevi's openess
towards the sephirots and caballistic gnosis can be interpreted as the
author's possible messages. Anyhow according to the author it seems that
the textual ambiguities of the novel allow to read in many ways, many and
contradictory when they are juxtaposed one another. The third section
dwells on Eco's semiotic theory concerning the interpretation procedures in
order to confront the philosopher's recommendation how to read literature
(and art in general) with the author's research. „The Role of the Reader"
(1975) and the Cambridge lectures in "Interpretation and Overinterp
retation" (1990), are taken into account here. On the basis of both especially
with reference to the debate between Eco and Rorty, the author argues on
behalf of his revealing the equivocal character of "Foucault's Pendulum". It
corresponds to Rorty's liberal-ironist expectations because one is allowed
to interpret it as counter-philosophical (the possibility under b). But as well
relevant is the interpretation which looks for a philosophical substructure
(the possibility a) because Eco - the philosopher by no means could meet the
demands of Rorty's radical anti-foundationalism. In the final section the
author confesses that he is not quite sure which is Eco's genuine philosophy,
whether it is science-oriented, or distinguished from science. To be able to
fix Eco's stance in this matter, would help to decide whether his fascination
with the occult knowledge is exclusively the intelectual passion of very cute
observer, or pherheps it is as well a partial affirmation of these ineradicable
propensities. For a fortunate intepretation of "Foucault's Pendulum" this
would be of basic importance.
188
Z w y r a z a m i g ł ę b o k i e g o zdziwienia
za
H e n r y k Wisner
A R T I C L E S
S e w e r y n a W y s ł o u c h T H E I C O N I C S I G N IN T H E C O N C E P
TION O F UMBERTO ECO AND T H E PROBLEM O F T H E VISUAL
CODE
Umberto Eco conceives the iconic sign not as a simple copy of the object
but as the outcome of an intellectual operation (selection, abstraction etc.).
The sign denotes the procedure of perception and reduces it to an arbitrarily
chosen graphic convention which is decisive for the recognizability of signs
("La struttura assente"). Such the element of convention (and not
"natural" similarity), opens up a field for research into the symbol and
metaphor in the visual arts.
In his " L a production des signes" Eco places emphasis on conscious
operations which transform the object, and ignores processes which take
place on the level of perception; in this way, he restricts the concept of the
sign (for instance, the elimination of road signs or reflecions in a mirror).
Eco is an adamant opponent of verbocentrism. He claims that the visual
code is not patterned after the language but, at the same time, he is not
certain whether it should be called a code or a repertoire.
All these inconsistencies can be avoided if one treats visual language as
a primary code, composed of signs whose transformations occur on the
level of perception. This code has a vocabulary of its own (visual patterns in
the brain), and mimetic rules for joining signs; it constitutes a basis for
secondary systems: painting and film. The conception of the primary visual
code ultimately liquidates verbocentrism and by ascribing to the arts the
status of secondary systems, it offers a methodological foundation for
examining the relations between them.
G r z e g o r z S i n k o U M B E R T O E C O ON T H E A T R E
The starting-point in Umberto Eco's search for a difinition of theatre is
the notion of ostension, of something being presented asa representative of
an entire class of things. In order to make ostension in theatre possible Eco
has recoursed to speech-act theory: all the utterances on the stage are
felicitous because they are based on the players' implied speech-act "we are
plaing now".
From the point of view of modal logic the utterances of stage characters
are opaque being based on the formula "I (the player) am saying now that
John (the stage character) says that p". The truth of p is not stated.
The social convention which makes theatre possible is explained by
Goffman's notion of frame while the distinction between intentional and
unintentional signs of players is based on Peirce: apart from the individual
interpretant of the viewer the basis of the interpretation is Peirce's notion of
ground.
I
In the last instance ostension becomes only an example of square semiosis
as formulated by Prague semioticians (and also of unlimited semiosis as
formulated by Eco himself). Whatever is seen on the stage stands for
something else for a reacting audience. The performative situation of
theatre establishes that it has to be taken as a sign. The main point here is
that the constitutive matter of the representamen and of the object of the
sign is the same (the player's body and the body of the stage character, or the
material of the props). This synthetic definition based upon several
combined lines of semiotic study seems to be Umberto Eco's main
contribution to modern theatrical theory.
A l i c j a H e l m a n S E M I O T I C S IN T H E M I R R O R O F MASS
CULTURE
In his novels ("The Name of the Rose" and "Foucault's Pendulum")
Umberto Eco encourages the readers towards taking part in a game and to
search for numerous references, quotations and cryptocitations from other
works. The author of this article discusses the suggested type of reading
matter, and follows the connections of those novels with mass culture. In
the case of "The Name of the Rose", she demonstrates copious links, above
all, with the works of Conan Doyle and Agatha Christie; for "Foucault's
Pendulum" such a reference point will be, predominantly "The Maltese
Falcon" by Dashiell Hammett and stories by R. Chandler. The author also
notes that an investigation conducted after a considerable timespan
("Foucault's Pendulum") is not an absolute novelty in literature. It
appeared i.a. in "The Daughter of Time", a novel by Josephine Tey
(Elisabeth MacKintosh).
Z b i g n i e w T a r a n i e n k o T H E C O N C E P T I O N O F T H E OPEN
WORK VIS A VIS C O N T E M P O R A R Y A R T
The author observes simplifications and inconsistencies contained in the
conception of the "open work", devised by Umberto Eco. By constructing
a model of an "open work", Eco reduces art to a few features and ignores its
aesthetic, ethical and metaphysical perspectives. Although in his theory Eco
takes into consideration the recipient, he treats him equally schematically.
One of the prime charges made by the author of the article is the fact that
Eco does not delineate precisely the nature of the "openness" of a work of
art, or its differences from the "openness" of every other artwork. We still
do not know how this new theory differs from its older counterparts, such as
the analysis of the openness of the work of art proposed by Roman
Ingarden.
D a n u t a K u ź n i c k a T H E SEMIOTIC C A T E G O R I E S O F UMBE
RTO ECO - MERITS AND IMPRECISIONS
This is an analysis of semiotic conceptions selected from two books by
Umberto Eco: "A Theory of Semiotics" and "Semiotics and the Philosophy
of Language". The author's intention was to demonstrate that in the 1970s
and 1980s Eco's ascertainments were close to poststructural trends. The
article discusses the categories of definition and the philosophical perspec
tives of definitions proposed by dictionaries and encyclopaedias, the
metaphor and its interdisciplinary character as well as the isotopy of the text
and the working hypothesis, conceived as factors of textual interpretation.
T e r e s a R u t k o w s k a PARODY AND IRONY IN T H E LITERA
RY THOUGHT AND PRAXIS OF UMBERTO ECO
One of the most astounding features of the works of Umberto Eco - in his
capacity as a scholar dealing with contemporary culture, a semiologist,
a scholar examining literature and a writer - is cohesion and complimentariness. Novels and brief humoristic-parodic works develop certain
research postulates contained in his scientific studies, while the latter throw
light on the meaning of the literary compositions by the same author. This
coherence is favoured by an all-pervading irony and self-irony. Eco treats
irony as a rhetorical trick but also as a certain type of an intellectual attitude
towards the world; irony, he declares, is "imperative for human dignity".
From this point of view, an analysis of concrete scientific and literary works
allows us to say that they are the expression of precisely such a consistent
world-outlook stand.
L u d w i k S t o m m a A HISTORY O F CONTEMPORANEITY
The article is an ethnological attempt at capturing the phenomenon of
advertising. Elements which are all-present in the iconography of the
advertisement include mountains, deserts, water falls, wild animals, villages
and the peasant family. The advertised product of culture is juxtaposed with
the order of Nature. The prime rule of all advertisements is to build
a mythical structure, in other words, to situate the product within the order
of natural and eternal necessity. The second rule consists of making
promises, and the third requires that the symbol must be remembered.
Z b i g n i e w B e n e d y k t o w i c z "TANGO" - T H E D A N C E O F
UNIVERSAL ALIENATION
The point of departure for this article is a review entitled "Tango, the
Dance of Polish Alienation", published in the "Los Angeles Times" and
dealing with "Tango", an animated Oscar-winning film by Zbigniew
Rybczyński (1983). The author interprets this film against the background
of Rybczynski's other works and the ethnographic and anthropologi
cal-visual stratum which can be extracted from them. He also discusses the
application of the metaphor of the tango in the theatrical compositions by
Kantor and Mrożek. In his anthropological interpretation of Rybczynski's
"Tango", Z. Benedyktowicz refers to a commentary by Ernesto Sabato who
explains the specificity of cultural contents of the primary roots of the dance
which belong to folk culture; he also cites the statement of one of the most
acclaimed creators of the tango (Discepuolo) who said that "The tango is
a mournful thought which is danced". In this manner, the author discovers
a process of the universalization oflocal cultural and philosophical contents
as well as their concurrence with the work under examination.
W o j c i e c h .1. B u r s z t a
"YES". N O S T A L G I C R E A L M S O F
MEMORY
The pretext to this essay was a concert given by the rock group "Yes" in
the Parisian "Zenith" concert hall on 3 June 1991.
The article considers the appearance of a global tide of a nostalgic return
to a formation concentrated around values connected with the contestation
culture of the 1960s. The conception of nostalgia has not only become
generalized and severed from its original connotations but it also has turned
into the object of intentional interpretations (fashion, the cinema). The
author maintains that nostalgia has become a desireable quality. Everyone
has the right to shape the past in such a manner so that it appears as
a cohesive whole with which we are able to identify; this process sets into
motion a nostalgic valorization of the world which remains a mere
reminiscence.
K r z y s z t o f P i ą t k o w s k i A R E T U R N TO T H E PAST. OR D O
REMINISCENCES LIE?
The text pertains to a fashion in contemporary culture for returning to
the past, or, more exactly, to the 1960s. The author asks whether in this
manner postmodern culture discovers the truth about the past. He
concentrates his attention on the Polish example, and contrasts the
so-called youth music of those years, together with the cultural phenome
non connected with it. with social and political reality. The mythology
created around those phenomena is comprehended by the author as
hypocrisy. He shows how Poland in the 'sixties was the scene of
a confrontation of two hypocritical realities: that of youth subculture and
that of politics, and how this fact had no connection with analogous
phenomena in Western culture.
C z e s ł a w R o b o t y c k i "PIWNICA P O D B A R A N A M I " - AN
ANTHROPOLOGICAL INTERPRETATION OF T H E FORMULA
OF A C A B A R E T
The cabaret as an artistic form dates back to the end of the nineteenth
century. It is a historical urban variant of culture, connected with the
categories of laughter, irony and carnival. "Piwnica pod Baranami" (The
Rams' Cellar) is a cabaret conducted in Cracow by Piotr Skrzynecki which
was founded in 1956 and, with short intervals, it remains active until the
present-day despite the fact that the edge of its irony was often directed
against the communist authorities (e.g. an ironical presentation of court
sentences during the martial law period). This cabaret constitutes a space
and "time" for a play of meanings, symbols, stereotypes, figures, plastic and
theatrical signs as well as figures of speech. Texts, gestures and plots appear
in changing contexts and functions of application. The spectator draws
satisfaction from the discovery of new meanings, an ironical distance, his
own interpretations and senses given to the spectacle. The author describes
the activity of the cabaret and interprets it, above all, in categories of "the
culture of laughter" (M. Bachtin, J. Huizinga). Cabaret laughter is a form of
cognition and adoption but also of distancing oneself from a reality whose
acceptance often proves to be difficult. "Piwnica" was the debut of many
young talented artists and it is an important center of social life.
D a r i u s z C z a j a T H E T A S T E O F P A R A D I S E IN A D V E R T I S E
MENTS
From the point of view of the ethnologist, advertising is, above all, the
"text" of culture. An ethnological analysis of the advertisement message
ignores the aesthetic dimension, and concentrates on the stereotypes,
associations, symbols, linguistic cliches etc. which it applies. The author
analyses three commercials selected from a standard television offer which
refer to the myth of heavenly happinness (Arcadia, the Biblical Eden and
the Happy Isles). He also draws attention to a paradox which consists of the
exploitation both of historical allusions and archaic models of the
imagination in advertisements of "modern" products.
W i e s ł a w S z p i l k a PARADISE LOST
The author analyses a catalogue issued by Schuster, a firm from Munich.
This publication not only presents the firm's offer but indirectly depicts
certain phenomena of essential rank for a scholar dealing with mass culture:
sport, fashion, and ways of spending leisure time. Mass culture, in the eyes
of the ethnologist, continues to propose the same: power, uniqueness and
durability, while the catalogue appears to be an entrance ticket to paradise.
W o j c i e c h M i c h e r a A SYMBOLIC CONTACT WITH R E A L I T Y
In one of the previous issues of "Konteksty", the author presented
a conception of the "museum" envisaged as a symbolic space and activity
("The Mystery of Shoes, or in Praise of Museums", "Konteksty" no
1:1993). This article, in turn, describes anthropological workshops which
were conducted in the years 1991 1993 in Biskupin and Czarne, the second
being a deserted Lemko village in the Low Beskid Mts. Both events were an
attempt at a practical application of those theoretical premises. The
intention of the Biskupin workshop was to endow musem space which
contains prehistorical skeleton graves, with the symbolic character of
a cemetry. This undertaking was performed through the presence of its
participants, marked with songs, silence, the sounds of a flute and bell, and
flowers - the materialization of memory. It is also memory which has
nothing in common with any sort of spiritistic practices, which gave
189
meaning to a "forefathers' eve" conducted in Czarne, and inspired by a play
by A. Mickiewicz. This time the workshop was concerned with memory
inscribed in a deserted and moribund site which, however, is filled with signs
of the presence of its former inhabitants. The article also remarks on the
symbol as a way of touching the past, a procedure which combines
encounter and interpretation.
J o a n n a S a r n e c k a S O R C E R Y IN C Z A R N E
This text is a report by a participant of anthropological workshops
conducted from 1991 to 1993 in Biskupin and Czarne (see the article by W.
Michera).
M a g d a l e n a M i c h a l s k a - C i a r k a T H E WARSAW F L O R A L
CROSS
The material contained in this article is a fragment of a more extensive
dissertation presented in the Chair of Anthropology and Ethnology in
Warsaw. In an analysis of a description of the contents surrounding a cross
composed of flowers and arranged on Victory Square in Warsaw after the
death of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński (May 1981), the author tries to depict
certain forms of the symbolic and mythical behaviour from the period. She
claims that the atmosphere of the years of martial law in which the discussed
evenets took place, together with accompanying ethical-moral transfor
mations, favoured the disclosure of this type of behaviour as well as a search
for a symbol in the contemporary world. The author intentionally resigned
from the temptation of a more profound interpretation in favour of an
analysis, a comparison and a description of the events, as precise as
possible. Photographs by Anna Beata Bohdziewicz are an excellent
supplementation of the text.
J a c e k S c h m i d t E M O T I O N S P E R C E I V E D BY A N A N T H R O P O
L O G I S T (UPON T H E E X A M P L E O F T H E S T E R E O T Y P E )
The emotional nature of the stereotype, stressed by many authors, was
supposed to explain a number of constitutive traits of this phenomenon,
such as irrationality or imprecision, longevity of duration, and resistance to
changes. In accordance with psychological tradition, emotions were treated
as structures that organize and put into order certain physiological states of
the organism by means of their external manifestations. These views,
transferred into ethnology, can be described as the attitude of an
anthropologist - "rationalist" who perceives emotions as an opposite of
knowledge, excludes them beyond the range of scientific interests, and
concentrates his attention on the descriptive aspect of the stereotype.
An alternative stand assumed by the scholar could be the manner of
thought adopted by the anthropologist - "intuitionist" who envisages
emotions as certain ideas indissolubly connected with knowledge; they take
part in coding the most significant meanings of cultural behaviour and the
interpretations of the majority of social interactions. Only by becoming
acquainted with the cultural significance of the emotional dimension of the
stereotype, is it possible to discover the meaning of its contents, granted to it
by a given group.
H a n n a B u r s z t a MORALITY IN T H E EYES OF A N ANTH
ROPOLOGIST
The examination of morality by an anthropologist makes it feasible to
disclose certain aspects of this phenomenon which evade routine external
and sociological observation. From among the multiple possibilities of
analysing morality as an unrejectable element of the cultural system, the
author selects two conceptions proposed by Polish science. The first
concentrates on Stomma's "concept of folk culture" and the second - on the
"social-regulative" theory of culture propounded by Jerzy Kmita. The first
concept regards the basic criterion for distinguishing various types of
culture to be the degree of the intensification of their intentional isolation.
Interpreted in this manner, morality is perceived through the: native-alien
option, central for folk culture. This opposition comprises the source of
"native morality". The initial thesis of the second conception proclaims that
the nature of factors which determine morality and world outlook system is
identical. The world outlook, therefore, is the source of images of good and
evil.
P i o t r F a b i ś , A n d r z e j Z a p o r o w s k i CULTURAL RELATI
VISM
A V A N I S H I N G POINT
An interpretation of the sociological theory by E . Durkheim and the
philosophy of the language proposed by G . Frege makes it possible to
reconstrue a model of the cultural translation performed by anthropologist.
An exposition of G . Frege's conception permits a precise analysis of the
cultural aspect of linguistic communication. The intention of an analysis of
Durkheim's definition of the social fact and sociology of knowledge is to
recreate the idea of a "conceptual scheme" or "conceptual system" which is
pursued at the moment in anthropological studies. Approached in this
manner, the works of E . Durkheim and G . Frege become a point of
departure for a critique of the thesis of cultural relativism or, to put it more
exactly, the hypothesis formulated by Sapir-Whorf. Ultimately, such
a critique leads to a conclusion which maintains that if the thesis of cultural
relativism is to have any sense at all, it must be solely a negation of
ethnocentrism.
H u b e r t C z a c h o w s k i ON P H O T O G R A P H Y A N D E T H N O G
RAPHY
The article analyses similarities between photography and ethnography.
The author is concerned both with indicating the identical epistemological
problems which face the history of both disciplines, and with disclosing the
similarity of the situation of the photographer who takes pictures of the
190
World, and the ethnographer who describes Culture. At present, in the era
of postmodernism and a controversy between relativism and objectivism,
new tendencies in photography and ethnography have altered their
heretofore image. They no longer consist of an ordinary copying of reality
but, according to C . Geertz, of making possible communication between
those who are being written about and photographed, and those, for whom
these tasks are performed.
S ł a w o m i r S i k o r a END OF T H E C E N T U R Y PHOTOGRAPHY.
PHOTOGRAPHY AND MYTH
The author proposes a detailed analysis of an album by Michael Lesy
entitled "Winsconsin Death Trip" (1973) which is composed of works by
a photographer from a small town in the state of Wisconsin (1890-1910) as
well as fragments of the local and state press. The photographs were
subjected to various types of operations (such as collage and juxtaposi
tions). S. Sikora interprets these undertakings as an attempt at telling
a mythical (by no means false) story almost exclusively with the aid of
"documents". He demonstrates that some of Lesy's operations can be
treated as ventures at "copying" the mechanisms of human memory whose
truth, according to K . Hastrup, is closer to that of the myth than to the
"objective" truth of history. The "subjectivization" which Lesy permitted
himself, serves a better transmission of truth concerning a certain past
reality. S. Sikora refers to the special theatrical experiences of K . Hastrup
("Out of Anthropology") and claims that a better contact with the past can
be attained with the assistance of a myth (fiction).
S e w e r y n A. W i s l o e k i S E L E C T S I L E S I A N E X A M P L E S O F
S O C I O T E C H N I C A L M Y S T I F I C A T I O N S IN A M A T E U R C R E A T I V I
T Y I N T H E POLISH P E O P L E ' S R E P U B L I C
The author proposes a thesis which claims that one of the important
research problems at the moment is the need for thorough scientific
reflection on a precisely construed system of deforming social consciousness
and levelling cultural tradition together with connected systems of values.
The purpose of such a mystification of real realtions was to introduce
falsehood and hypocrisy in place of relegated values. Upon the basis of the
example of Silesian amateur artists, the author offers a synthetic discussion
of a representative selection of sociotechnical mystifications applied in
Upper Silesia. He also draws attention to the fact that they could pertain to
works on regional folk culture.
M a r i a n G r z e g o r z G e r l i c h ON A F E E L I N G OF NATIONAL
A F F I L I A T I O N A N D T H E A T T I T U D E TOWARDS "ALIENS". COM
MENTS ON T H E M A R G I N OF R E S E A R C H INTO T H E NATIONAL
CONSCIOUSNESS O F C O N T E M P O R A R Y UPPER SILESIANS
This is a presentation of two aspects of the contemporary divisions within
the Upper Silesian regional community: the national affiliation of the
inhabitants of this region and their attitude towards aliens. The article is
based on an analysis of the results of more extensive empirical studies
conducted in the second half of the 1980s and, with intervals, in 1991 and
1992.
The majority of the persons involved in the survey experienced difficulties
with an unambigous definition of their national affiliation. On the other
hand, they clearly articulated their attachment to "the Silesian spirit", a fact
which indicates a high degree of ethnic integration. The pattern of the
declarations showed that 9 per cent were totally unable to define their
national affiliation, 28 per cent claimed that "they feel Silesians", 14 per
cent stressed their Silesian nature, at the same time referring to their bonds
with Polishness, 11 per cent indicated their Silesian affiliation but distinctly
referred to their ties with the German nationality, 31 per cent said that they
felt they were Poles (simultaneously declaring strong bonds with Silesia),
while 7 per cent proclaimed that they regard themselves as Germans.
The attitude towards aliens reveals a vividly negative tendency (whose
sources are to be found in the past and in the present). Hostility towards
aliens is determined by social and cultural factors and in particular by the
awareness of the peripherial location and the exploitation of Upper Silesia.
Consequently, "openness" towards establishing contacts with outsiders is
relatively slight.
B e a t a W a s i l e w s k a T H E C O N T E M P O R A R Y ŁEMKO C O M
MUNITY
This article is an attempted analysis of the Lemko community from 1947
to 1992. One cannot discuss the current problems of this ethnic minority
without delving deeper into the past: the period of German occupation and
the post-war resettlements of the Lemko population. The use of archive
material which up to now remained unavailable, allowed the author to
throw new light on the "Vistula" campaign, and the concentration camp in
Jaworzno.
In 1957 organized Lemko activity became possible within the framework
of the Ukrainian Socio-Cultural Society. At present, there appear to be two
options for Lemko self-definition. The first regards the Lemko population
as an ethnic group belonging to the Ukraine. The second option does not
negate relations with the Ukraine and notes a similarity of language and
religion. Nonetheless, it does not regard them as tantamount to an
determinant of identity. Such a role can be only played by self-definition.
Both variants of Lemko national identity are reflected in the work pursued
by Lemko organizations.
A n d r z e j S t a w a r z AN IMAGE O F T H E PRE-WAR CAPITALIST
IN S O C I A L M E M O R Y ( R E F L E C T I O N S O F A N E T H N O L O G I S T )
The article contains general reflections concerning heretofore ethnograp
hic research dealing with the retention of the image of a capitalist
(entrepreneur) in social memory. The author inquires into three questions.
First, he deals with the shaping of a stereotype of the capitalist in social
awareness after 1945, during the period of the Polish People's Republic (and
an all-powerful socialist system). Secondly, he considers the characteristic
features of the pre-1945 capitalist stored in social memory. Thirdly, he
reflects on the impact of the authority (in the meaning proposed by Bystroń)
of the capitalist upon the development of working-class culture during the
nineteenth and the first half of the twentieth century. In the second and third
case, basic theses are supported by existing findings of detailed research
concerning Łódź, Żyrardów and Warsaw; the author also used select
fragments of reminiscences and novels based on recollections. Finally, he
proposes investigations which could progress in two directions. The first
could delve deeper into the culture-creative role of the authority of the
pre-war capitalist; the other could examine the mythologization of reality
upon the basis of stories retained in the memories of workers (employees)
which contain elements of a "legend" about entrepreneurs of the past.
A n t o n i K r o h T H E F I R S T W O R L D W A R IS S T I L L B E I N G
WAGED
The achievements of the Austro-Hungarian and German military
propaganda from the time of the first world war are still alive. Created in
order to meet the requirements of the moment, and in accordance with
precisely defined ideological canons, it proved to be extratemporal, and
a point of departure for multiple currents in twentieth-century European
art. World War I propaganda inspired i.a. the art of Italian fascism which,
in turn, influenced the art of the Third Reich and its younger sister - the art
of Soviet socialist realism, together with its national variants pursued by
satellite states. In Poland, postsociallist realist trends can be also detected in
sacral art and art of the political opposition during the period of martial
law. The author presents select examples of such "wandering motifs".
R o b e r t D z i ę c i e l s k i A CRISIS IN T H E F I R E O F D E S T R U C
T I O N , O R S E V E R A L R E F L E C T I O N S A F T E R R E A D I N G T H E "GA
ZETA WYBORCZA"
The image of the world depicted in 1992 on the front pages of the "Gazeta
Wyborcza" reveals a multi-dimensional crisis born in the fire of destruction.
The latter discloses a reality of chaos. At the same time, it offers hope for
putting that reality into an order which would permit the "lost man" to find
his place in the world. The loosing of that place denotes a miscomprehen
sion of the world which, as a result, grows hostile and unacceptable. Man
awaits the fire of creation. The only question is: who or what will bring it,
and who will explain the world anew?
M o n i k a S z n a j d e r m a n AIDS - T H E SHAPE O F A M Y T H
In her article devoted to the phenomenon of A I D S in group imagination
the author presents the illness as a contemporary realization of the old myth
of the plague, epidemic or pestilence. A I D S fits very well into this archaic
scenario which regarded an epidemic as a sign of the end of the world and
a stigma of divine wrath but also as a symbol of the sacrum which touches
man and the world. A I D S reanimates certain phantasms dating back to the
Middle Ages and the Black Death: the depiction of death as decay and
ultimate disintegration, produced by the art of the macabre, and the motif
of the Dance of the Dead in which all people are equal. In this context, there
must inevitably appear a question which philosophers have been asking for
the past few years: can AIDS, and death caused by it, be subjected to an
aestheticization which, at least partially, accompanied such illnesses as
syphilis or tuberculosis? In other words, does or can A I D S bring any sort of
hope? At the moment, this question remains just as open as that concerning
the future and final form of the still emerging myth of this "pestilence of the
twentieth century".
M a r i a F i d e r k i e w i c z THE MODEL OF THE WORLD IN THE
W O R K S O F E R W I N SÓWKA
The author interprets the naive paintings by Erwin Sówka by referring to
semiotic categories. The spatial relations in these compositions occur as
a language which expresses moral constructions. One can speak about an
ethical-spatial domain enclosed within the opposition between "good" and
"evil", where "good" signifies i.a. the Absolute God - Brahma (Krishna);
paradise, as a perfect place on Earth; love, a divine element; femininity, as
one of God's powers; harmony between God, Nature and man which is the
foundation of harmony between people; a strivinig towards God, His
recognition and proximity with Him through a departure from matter
(transcendent meditation); and, finally, identification with God's Essence,
as the supreme form of man's contact with the divine element.
The realm of "good" which Sówka envisaged as "above" (in contrast to
the category of "evil", associated with "below" i.e. the mine) also included
the home and embraces Nikiszowiec (a district of Katowice) and Silesia (a
small homeland).
"Evil" denotes a rejection of God and a cult of matter whose consequence
is the absence of harmony between God, Nature and man as well as the
devastation of the Earth, so observable at present; chaos and destruction, as
an effect of erroneously comprehended technical progress; "below" - the
mine, a chtonic and demonic world hostile towards man, together with the
equally demonic St. Barbara; and satan, the misleading Angel of Light.
A l e k s a n d e r J a c k o w s k i ARS EROTICA
The article contains reflections concerning the exhibition entitled "Ars
Erotica" and held in the National Museum in Warsaw. The author draws
attention to the transgression of boundaries of privacy and the breaking of
conventions which create a continuum of culture although they are subject
to constant transformation. In contemporary culture, in which in the recent
past we have been able to observe an incessant shifting of limits of tolerance
as regards the protection of intimacy, the delicacy of feelings and ugliness
- as testified by the exhibition in question - beauty in art has simply ceased
to be fashinable, in particular in painting.
Erotica is known under a multitude of names. It has various forms of
expression in unprofessional creativity which the author presents in:
"Provincial Eros". It would be difficult in this particular case to talk about
art or artism. Forms of disclosing erotic longing, the great variety of
attitudes and the plebeian nature of imagination appear to be of great
interest. That what is at stake is creativity that stems from one's own
requirement and pursued for one's own satisfaction.
Odcinek dla posiadacza rachunku
Pokwitowanie dla w p ł a c a j ą c e g o
zł
Zł
Zł
wpłacający
wpłacający
Odcinek dla b a n k u
wpłacający
D o k ł a d n y adres
D o k ł a d n y adres
D o k ł a d n y adres
na r-k
na r-k
na r-k
AMOS
AMOS
AMOS
ul. Zuga 12, W A R S Z A W A
ul. Zuga 12, W A R S Z A W A
ul. Zuga 12, W A R S Z A W A
V I I I Oddział P K O W-wa
V I I I Oddział P K O W-wa
V I I I Oddział P K O W-wa
nrr-ku
1586-77578-136
stempel
nrr-ku
1586-77578-136
stempel
podpis p r z y j m u j ą c e g o
W p ł a l y na г-ki o s z c z ę d n o ś c i o w o - r o z l i c z e n i o w e wolne są od o p ł a t
nrr-ku
1586-77578-136
Pobrano
opłatę
stempel
podpis p r z y j m u j ą c e g o
podpis p r z y j m u j ą c e g o
zł
191
I
NOTY
O
Zbnigniew Benedyktowicz
doktor, antropolog kultury, redaktor
„Kontekstów", kierownik Pracowni Teorii i Historii Filmu w IS
PAN.
Hanna Burszta - etnolog (studia UAM). Wykłada na Wydziale Studiów
Edukacynych UAM.
Wojciech J . Burszta - dr hab., etnolog, wykładowca w Katedrze
Etnologii UAM, obecnie New Haven University.
Hubert Czachowski - etnolog, pracuje w Dziale Folkloru w Muzeum
Etnograficznym w Toruniu.
Dariusz Czaja -etnolog (studja UJ), asystent w Katedrze Etnologii UJ.
Pisze pracę doktorską o symbolu w filmie.
Jacques Derrida - filozof francuski, twórca kierunku dekonstruktywistycznego.
Robert Dzięcielski - etnolog, asystent w Katedrze Etnologii w Łodzi.
Umberto Eco - włoski pisarz, semiotyk, filozof, estetyk, teoretyk
kultury.
Piotr F a b i ś - etnolog (studia UAM), doktorant w Szkole Nauk Społecz
nych przy Instytucie Filozofii i Socjologii PAN.
Maria Fiderkiewicz ukończyła Podyplomowe Studium Etnograficzne
w Toruniu; kierownik Działu Sztuki Nieprofesjonalnej w Muzeum
Śląskim (wraz z Sewerynem A. Wisłockim stworzyła tam Kolekcję
Sztuki Nieprofesjonalnej).
Marian Grzegorz Gerlich - doktor, etnolog, pracował w Śląskim
Instytucie Naukowym (sekretarz naukowy), redaktor naczelny
"Zarania Śląskiego" do 1992. Zajmuje się kulturą plebejsko-miejską i stosunkami etnicznymi na Górnym Śląsku.
Alicja Helman - profesor, teoretyk filmu, pracuje w Zakładzie Filmu
i Telewizji IFP UJ.
Aleksander Jackowski - antropolog kultury, (studia: socjologia UW),
autor wielu tekstów o współczesnej kulturze artystycznej, zwłasz
cza ludowej. Krytyk sztuki. Wykłada w Katedrze' Etnologii i Ant
ropologii Kulturowej UW. Organizator kilkudziesięciu wystaw
sztuki ludowej i naiwnej w kraju i za granicą. Redaktor „Konteks
tów".
Antoni Kroh - etnograf, bohemista, pisarz. Zajmuje się min. sztuką
ludową i popularną. Napisał m.in. książkę O Szwejku i o nas.
Mieszka w Nowym Sączu.
Danuta Kuźnicka - doktor, adjunkt w Pracowni Teatru IS PAN,
wykładowca w Państwowej Wyższej Szkole Teatralnej w War
szawie. Prowadzi badania nad współczesnym teatrem wizualnym
i plastycznym oraz nad teorią teatru.
Magdalena Michalska-Ciarka - etnolog, absolwentka Katedry Et
nologii i Antropologii Kulturowej UW. Mieszka w Warszawie.
Wojciech Michera - archeolog, etnolog (studia UW); prowadzi zajęcia
Na wszystkich częściach blankietu należy wpi
sać czytelnie atramentem, długopisem lub pis
mem maszynowym jednakowo k w o t ę cyframi,
imię i nazwisko wpłacającego, jego adres,
siedzibę oddziału banku w którym prowadzo
ny jest rachunek oraz numer i nazwę tego
rachunku.
A U T O R A C H
w Studium Kształcenia Otwartego (UW), w Państwowej Wyższej
Szkole Teatralnej, w XVII Społecznym Liceum Ogólnokształcącym
w Warszawie. Autor książki Anly-Daniken.
Stefan Morawski - emerytowany profesor w Instytucie Sztuki PAN,
filozof, estetyk, krytyk sztuki. Redaktor naczelny "Polish Art
Studies ". Autor wielu prac z teorii sztuki i filozofii.
Krzysztof Piątkowski-doktor, adiunkt w Zakładzie Etnologii, Instytutu
Archeologii i Etnologii UMK w Toruniu; wykłada także na UŁ i UJ.
Czesław Robotycki - dr hab., pracuje w Katedrze Etnologii UJ.
Zajmuje się antropologią kultury współczesnej.
Teresa Rutkowska - pracuje w Instytucie Sztuki PAN, sekretarz
redakcji „Kwartalnika Filmowego". Zajmuje się teorią filmu
i kultury współczesnej.
Joanna Sarnecka - uczennica XVII Społecznego Liceum Ogólnoksz
tałcącego w Warszawie.
Jacek Schmidt
doktor, etnolog, adiunkt w Instytucie Etnologii
i Antropologii Kulturowej UAM. Zajmuje się problematyką etnicz
ną, zagadnieniami stereotypu, tożsamości i identyfikacji kulturo
wej (Polska) oraz historią kultury ludów Oceanii (Polinezja).
Sławomir Sikora-etnolog (studia UW), sekretarz redakcji kwartalnika
„Konteksty". Zajmuje się antropologią filmu i fotografii.
Grzegorz Sinko ur. 1923 г., emerytowany profesor w Instytucie Sztuki
PAN. Zajmuje się literaturą angielską i teorią teatru.
Andrzej Stawarz - doktor, etnograf, historyk, archiwista, muzealnik,
Dyrektor Muzeum Niepodległości, prezes oddziału warszaws
kiego PTL, red. naczelny „Niepodległości i Pamięci".
Ludwik Stomma - profesor, etnolog, wykłada w Ecole Pratique des
Hautes Etudes (Sorbona).
Monika Sznajderman - etnolog (studia UW), studia doktoranckie
Instytut Sztuki PAN; pisze pracę doktorską poświęconą postaci
błazna w kulturze. Mieszka w Czarnym.
Wiesław Szpilka - etnolog (studia UJ), studia doktoranckie Instytut
Sztuki PAN; pisze pracę doktorską poświęconą etnologicznej
interpretacji kultury masowej. Mieszka w Kościelisku.
Zbigniew Taranienko - doktor nauk humanistycznych, estetyk, krytyk
sztuki, kierownik artystyczny Galerii Studio w Warszawie.
Beata Wasilewska - etnolog, doktorantka w Katedrze Etnologii UŁ.
Seweryn A. Wisłocki - polonista, politolog. Pracował w Muzeum
Śląskim, obecnie w Wojewódzkim Wydziale Kultury w Katowi
cach.
Seweryna Wysłouch - profesor, pracuje w Instytucie Filologii UAM,
autorka prac z zakresu teorii literatury i historii literatury XX w.
Andrzej Zaporowski - etnolog (studia UAM), doktorant w Instytucie
Filozofii UAM.
PRENUMERATA
PRENUMERATA
„KONTEKSTÓW"
„KONTEKSTÓW"
I półrocze
I półrocze
II półrocze
II półrocze
roczna
roczna
ilość egz.
ilość egz.
Z a skutki wynikłe z mylnego wypełnienia
blankietu ponosi o d p o w i e d z i a l n o ś ć wyłącznie
wpłacający.
