Coercion, Compulsion, Forced Emigrations. Experiences of Polish Artists during the Martial Law in Poland

Abstract

A sociological look at artists’ biographies makes one reflect on their increased mobility. Purposes and reasons of the artists’ migratory journeys are various, they have a different character and their effects also vary. The article based on the narratives of the Polish artists shows three variants of making decisions to emigrate from Poland following the imposition of the martial law in December of 1981. The purpose of the article is also an attempt to modify the dominant definitions of forced emigration by extending it to the aspect of internal coercion generating a strong push impulse. This internal factor seems to be very important in the cases analysed in the article. The biographical interview method allows to indicate that, apart from external coercion, various entanglements of circumstances and trajectories are revealed, which in some cases lead to the decision to leave the home country.