‘Peace is Pretty Good fun. Maybe Even Better than War!’ On Bitwa o Kozi Dwórby Józef Hen

Abstract

The article attempts to interpret the novel Bitwa o Kozi Dwór (1955) from the perspective of spacestudies. Following the research of Yi-Fu Tuan and Florian Znaniecki, it analyses the experienceof war playing as an important ritual for domesticating space and, at the same time, an importantevent in characters’ biography. Józef Hen’s novel tells the story of a group of children looking fora place to play football in pre-war Warsaw. Kozi Dwór seems to be perfect for this, but the boysfrom Obozowa play there most often. The two groups fi ght several times, but eventually join forcesto form a football team and defeat boys from richer families in a match. The article proves thatthe ‘backyard war’ is an initiatory experience at the level of identifi cation with a specifi c place,confl ict resolution or interpersonal relations. Not only does Hen use a well-known theme of children’sliterature, but at the same time tells an autobiographical story. The researcher posits that,as in Nowolipie Street, the writer recalls a world that vanished during the Second World War,but does not elaborate on its end. The battle of Kozi Dwór, however, is not only a foreshadowingof the tragic fate of this generation, but also a recollection of the Arcadian landscape of childhood,when peacemaking was easier.