Spiritual exercises of literary scholars
The author discusses the book edited by Jerzy Jarzębski and Jakub Momro from different points of view. He examines the range of meanings of the terms used in the title. Considering the question of pessimism in the context of early modern literature, he states that the book gives an overview of an alternative history of Polish literature and draws attention to the role of philosophy in shaping the concept of pessimism (e.g., Existentialism). The book is both a monograph on a single topic, and a collection of material for a compendium about the present times built out of literature of the last few decades.

Spiritual exercises of literary scholars
The author discusses the book edited by Jerzy Jarzębski and Jakub Momro from different points of view. He examines the range of meanings of the terms used in the title. Considering the question of pessimism in the context of early modern literature, he states that the book gives an overview of an alternative history of Polish literature and draws attention to the role of philosophy in shaping the concept of pessimism (e.g., Existentialism). The book is both a monograph on a single topic, and a collection of material for a compendium about the present times built out of literature of the last few decades.