Chiny zapożyczone i zapośredniczone. Głos publicystyczny Elizy Orzeszkowej w sprawie równouprawnienia

Abstract

The article aims to present Eliza Orzeszkowa’s unusual publicist voice on the question of women’s equal rights. The unusualness is related to her use of Confucius as a figure of transfer, as well as her referring to the scientific and doctrinal fragments of his Chinese philosophical and social teachings. Eliza Orzeszkowa’s passion for journalism resulted in a series of statements on the so-called woman question. In 2020, non-redacted parts of the manuscript of a study on women’s equal rights, found in Vilnius by Iwona Wiśniewska, were published in print. The writer devoted first parts of her text to the position of woman in ancient cultures. She referred, interalia, to Confucius’ philosophical thought, which she adopted as one of the points of departure for defining her own vision of equal rights. However, she drew on the Confucian themes from secondary sources, citing the study of Edward Prądzyński. An important channel for transmitting the Confucian thought to Europe was the thought of the Enlightenment, which, as Grażyna Borkowska argues, is crucial for the discussion of the writer’s position on the woman question.