TY - JOUR
TI - Poland and the Conrad Problem: the controversy over Joseph Conrad-Korzeniowski's patriotism.
AU - Front, Łukasz
TI - Poland and the Conrad Problem: the controversy over Joseph Conrad-Korzeniowski's patriotism.
AB - The following article is a contribution to the history of Conrad’s critical appraisals in Poland. It refers to the most contentious issue, which arouses a plethora of emotions and controversies. There are critics who claim that within this context some compatriots pursued a legalistic process against Conrad. Because this literary “trial” does not seem to have been resolved definitively, I decided to shed a different light on it by drawing from Karol Ludwik Koniński, a critic and publicist of the interwar period whose role is that of an unbiased expert (what’s most important: he did not get involved in the arguments about Conrad). In his numerous articles Koniński articulates his insightful and substantial opinions regarding patriotism, on the one hand, and deviation from it, on the other hand. The below article examines a problem first posed (in a rather unfortunate way) by Eliza Orzeszkowa at the end of 19th century, but from various intertwining perspectives: historical, moral, psychological and biographical. This multilateralism facilitates the most objective approach to this complicated issue, as well as helps to eschew various simplifications and stereotypes. Hence, in Koniński’s hypothetical expertise, one finds surprising statements about Conrad and his approach to the Polish cultural heritage. 
VL - 2016
IS - Vol. 11
PY - 2017
SN - 1899-3028
C1 - 2084-3941
SP - 7
EP - 41
DO - 10.4467/20843941YC.16.001.6847
UR - https://ejournals.eu/czasopismo/yearbook-of-conrad-studies/artykul/poland-and-the-conrad-problem-the-controversy-over-joseph-conrad-korzeniowskis-patriotism
KW - Joseph Conrad
KW - Karol Ludwik Koniński
KW - Polish reception of Conrad
KW - the concept of loyalty and betrayal
KW - the history of Poland in times of captivity
KW - the deviation from national loyalty
KW - argument about the emigration of talent
KW - the seminal moments in Conrad’s biography
KW - Conrad’s inner feeling vs. the concept of patriotism
KW - Joseph Conrad-Korzeniowski’s Polish background