„nie mogę [...] pisać długo – zresztą nie mam nawet co, bo tu zawsze jednakowo”. Ludzie Poświętnego w listach Henryka Sienkiewicza do Konrada Dobrskiego

Abstract

The correspondence from Henryk Sienkiewicz to Konrad Dobrski from the years 1865–1866 records reflections of the future author of The Trilogy on his one year’s stay as a tutor to the Weyher family (Ludwik, his uncle, and Aleksandra) in Poświętne near Płońsk. There Sienkiewicz met various people. Their identities are established in the article on the basis of hitherto unused archival sources in the form of corrections and factual additions to the 1977 edition of letters. The unflattering remarks about the Weyhers and the guests staying at their house show Sienkiewicz’s critical attitude towards the conformist life of landowners, to whom he gives the worst possible testimony. The text attempts to explain the reasons and contexts of such an attitude of the young Sienkiewicz. This attempt is preceded by an inquiry into the reasons behind Sienkiewicz’s decision to take a gap year in education and accept gainful employment away from his own family.