Selected peasant issues of the 1930s in the opinions of Warsaw literary magazine columnists (Wiadomości Literackie, Prosto z Mostu, and Pion)

Abstract

In the press of the interwar period, among the group of Warsaw opinion-forming periodicals, the three largest literary and social weeklies dominated – the liberal Wiadomości Literackie, the pro-Sanacja Pion and the right-wing Prosto z Mostu. These periodicals shaped the artistic tastes and socio-political views of the progressive intelligentsia. They commented on the most important events of literary and social life, including those related to the activity of rural residents. The article contains the results of a comparative analysis of the speeches of critics and columnists of the capital’s literary magazines in the 1930s, relating to selected forms of social, cultural and political activity of peasants (literary and diary works, as well as strike actions). The study deals with the main themes of press discussions and literary critical essays, referring to the constitutive features of peasant literature, the social image of the village (Jalu Kurek’s novel Grypa szaleje w Naprawie), the living conditions of peasants (Pamiętniki chłopów) and their political attitudes (the Great Peasant Uprising). The interpretation of press materials allowed for the formulation of conclusions about the press image of a cruel and hungry peasant, culturally excluded, and deprived of a chance to change his living conditions. The demands for the social advancement of peasants put forward by columnists of Warsaw magazines were mostly declarative and conservative.