Why does he save? (transl. by Tadeusz Karłowicz)

Abstract

The review concerns Beata Wołoszyn's book Norwid ocala. Heroizm, śmierć i zmartwychwstanie w twórczości postromantyka (Norwid Saves. Heroism, Death and Resurrection in the Post-Romantic's Works) (Krakow 2008), devoted to the Thanatotic imagination of the author of Vade-mecum. The subject – central to Norwid's works – comprehensively discussed and analyzed by the Author, has not been depraved of approaches and issues that were missing from earlier studies. Generally the argument is presented in a solid and logical way, although there are also controversial, or even doubtful suggestions, as e.g. defining Norwid as a “post-Romantic”, or interpreting the images of heroic death or heroic attitudes present in the poet's works in the categories of martyrology.