Podróże Jarosława Iwaszkiewicza w kontekście etnokulturowym (dyskurs polsko-rosyjski). Na materiale „Dzienników” pisarza

Abstract

Travels were an important part of Jarosław Iwaszkiewicz’s life. One of the destinations he chose was the Soviet Union. These trips were usually of an official character, and less often – private. The writer meticulously noted down his impressions in his private Dzienniki [Diaries], and sometimes shared them with the Polish reader in columns and newspaper articles. The author of Panny z Wilka [The Maids from Wilko] masterfully immortalised the realities prevailing in the Soviet Union. Iwaszkiewicz’s view of Russia, and St Petersburg in particular, is not the account of an ordinary tourist, because the writer perceived the world through the prism of literature, constantly confronting reality with literary images. This makes Dzienniki extremely interesting material for analysis. This article takes a journey across Russia, in the footsteps of Iwaszkiewicz, focuses on literary allusions, admiration of nature and architecture, and pays special attention to the absurdities of the communist state.