Krajobrazy Jarosława Iwaszkiewicza. Nadawanie znaczeń

Abstract

This article analyses the way landscapes are presented in Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz’s prose, using the short stories Panny z Wilka [The Maids of Wilko], Brzezina [The Birch Grove] and Młyn nad Utratą [The Mill on the Utrata River] as examples. The main interpretative context is provided by Georg Simmel’s essay “The Bridge and the Door”. The author distinguishes three variants of representation, which she defines as the timelessness of landscape, the fullness of landscape and the transcendence of landscape. In her opinion, in Iwaszkiewicz’s stories, landscape acts as a symbol, is a vehicle for plot change, and also an exponent of ideas, playing a special role as a mediator of mystery with existential significance. The multisensory perception of reality is an experience so deeply internalised that it becomes an integral part of the characters’ being.