There is probably no doubt, that black thread of mourning deeply penetrates the tissue of Polish life. And this is true for many areas of life. From a specific model of Polish Catholicism (with the strongly expressed theme of a crucified Christ), through behaviour in the public space (funerals of great artists and politicians, which become spectacles of patriotism), through to works of art (theatres filled with spirits of the dead and great movie achievements). For the past two centuries death has been a non-negotiable element of our symbolic equipment, an ideological foundation of the Polish collective imagination. Death in its essence – experienced, shown, played – has occupied a prime position in Polish mythology over the last two centuries. And such mythology, as I understand it here, is not just fiction, falsehood or fabrication. Although it has been woven with beliefs and ideas, it leads a real life of its own and has real power over the thinking and behaviour of those who believe in it.
 

The Concept of Góralness in the light of German’s Plans of Exhibition in the Tatra Museum

The article discusses the problem of Nazi ethnopolicy towards the Polish Highlanders from the Tatra Mountains regions. Drawing on new or hitherto littleknown sources produces by Germans officials and ethnologists, author aims to explore the way of perceiving and conceptualization of Górale ethnicity by occupying authority. By analyzing Germans plans of reorganization of the Tatra Museum in Zakopane, she tries to reconstruct the process of objectification of Góralness by Nazi regime. As it is shown, the cultural specificity of Górale, which was exposed by Polish intelligentsia as the essence of Polishness, during World War II became an object of manipulation of the Nazi occupier, who tried to use it to break the national unity of Poles by creating a separate highland nation, so called Goralenvolk.
 

Witness of History as a Figure in the Context of Cursed Soldiers’ Practices of Commemoration

Article is a proporsal of anthropological reflexion on the functioning of the Witness of History cathegory, and process of collecting oral history, in the context of Cursed Soldiers commemorating practices. Study shows Witness of History figure and its memories as phenomenas of not only epistemological, but also axiological meanings. It presents ideological and political background of presence people who experienced Second World War and afterwar period in the context of Cursed Soldiers commemoration movement. Author stress importance of reflexion on the functioning history and historiography artefacts in the space od social practices.
 

Patriotic Marketing and Design in Poland. An Example of Próchnik and Red Is Bad Clothing Brands

The article is an anthropological analysis of ideas of patriotism created by two companies – Próchnik (which sells mostly formal and smart casual clothing) and Red Is Bad (which offers predominantly street fashion). The both firms’ clients are probably middle-class men, what is more the both firms continuously refer to Polish history and national imaginarium. However, the companies create different worldviews and shapes of patriotism. Próchnik creates narrative of military and sport successes achieved by the Poles in the West and in the homeland. Red Is Bad exploit themes connected with Polish expansion in the East and the nation’s martyrology. One may be astonished by constant efforts made by the both companies, in order to educate the customers and to make them proud of their identity. Such grandiloquent style of marketing and design seems to be an answer to many Poles’ needs.
 

2-in-1: Social Classes, Gender and Food. A Case Study of Household in one of Indian Metropolises

The article explores the politics of poverty of upper middle class in one of Indian metropolises.
The author analyzes the role of economic and cultural capitals, as well as gender as manifested in and through food practices.
 

Female Spirits of Nature in Polish Folklore and Classical Methodology

In this paper we try to compare the female spirits of nature in Polish folklore with those of classical mythology, that is, the nymphs and their different varieties, and also with a particular kind of ancient Greek female demons, the so called ἄωραι (áōrai, ancient Greek word for untimely dead young women). Thus, we follow a research line started by the Polish scholar Witold Klinger, who focused mainly on the Eastern Slavic rusalki; in order to extend our comparative study to Polish beliefs, we shall examine Polish folklore materials that were unpublished when Klinger pursued his studies; likewise, comparison with the ancient Greek áōrai has not been attempted yet, so far as we know. We shall come to the conclusion that neither nymphs nor áōrai are at the basis of Polish female spirits, since the different traits of all those creatures combined in different ways in each cultural context.
 

Huascarán – Mythology and Fatality of Peru’s Highest Mountain

Huascarán (6768 m. a.s.l.) – Peru’s highest mountain peak, located in Cordillera Blanca range, standing over fertile and populated since thousands of years Rio Santa valley in the Ancash department. It’s rich mythology, still rarely found among Quechua natives, was shaped in relation with geographical factor of being dominated by a huge seismic activity. Since the ancient times the inhabitants of this region have lived in the shadow of a constant threat, dying in large numbers as a result of earthquakes, enormous avalanches and floods. This study focuses on the mythological narratives and Indian perception of natural disasters, perceived upon broader view of archaic Andean outlook, while at the same time shaped heavily by the cultural trauma. The constant tension between tremendum a fascinans within the perception of Huascarán made impact on the folk theodicy, both core, as well as syncretic folk religiousness. The authors also focus on some of the contemporary forms of mythicization of Huascarán, trying to outline the most important aspects to functioning of this mountain within the culture of the Ancash region.
 

Thee Bottom-up Perpective on the „Great Change” – Wisłok Wielki Case

In recent decades anthropological and sociological study about „Polish transition” flourished especially after the theoretical matrix of „cultural trauma” was introduced. The article is an attempt to make an empirical refutation of the theory and base on the fieldwork carried out between 2010 and 2011 in Wisłok Wielki. The study aimed at the reconstruction the “bottom-up” experiences of the changes taking place in Poland since ‘89. The obtained data allowed to critical review of the theory of „trauma of great change”, showing that a much wider range of social and cultural factors affects the way people experience and classify changes. The key metaphors that organize discourse of the change are connected with the chain of oppositions, such as past and present with axiological emphasis on the past, mobility-immobility, maturity-immaturity, etc.