The solidarność spring?

Abstract

Written in late 1988, this article summarizes research by a team of sociologists on the strikes in that year (especially in Gdansk) that eventually led to the Round Table negotiations. The young strikers are described as both continuing the Solidarity tradition and introducing new elements, such as their existential protest against the meaninglessness of daily life in the workplace. Pathos and play became weapons, and the strike community became an enclave of authenticity. The authors conclude that the young strikers, whether ultimately successful in achieving their stated goals or not, represented a new quality in the Polish opposition movement.