Magdalena Lachman

The impulse to write this article came with the recognition that among the various ways to define and characterize advertising the ones which emphasize – either intentionally or unintentionally – the variously understood (para)literary nature of the phenomenon occupy a prominent position. The belief that advertising can be regarded as a variety or specific manifestations of literature reveals itself on various occasions and in a wide variety of sources (not necessarily oriented towards literary studies): in academic research, literary criticism, essay and column writing, journalism and popular publications. The author does not seek to determine whether and under what conditions advertising complies with the requirements of a literary work, but rather adopts a reconstructive attitude and looks for an answer to the question, due to what properties and factors advertising is sometimes viewed in literary (or, more broadly, artistic) terms, and what arguments are used in support of this thesis, as well as what results from this type of beliefs for literary art itself, its condition, cultural rank and status quo.

The article attempts to describe the untypical and paradoxical position of comics in contemporary culture. It is almost always seen as different from the mainstream artistic canon. Yet analytical tools and concepts used in the study of comics most often originate in well-established, canonical disciplines within the academic fi eld. Composite nature of comics provides arguments for its independence as a genre and medium, however the infl uence of other media and forms of artistic creativity on its meaning and fi nal shape proves that it maintains strong relations with other arts. What is more, critics are in dispute about whether comics is an original or derivative form of creativity. The article also tries to present the debate between those who claim that comics is a creative and dynamic genre and those who see in it only as a parasitic element within the realm of genuine art.

The article takes up the reflection on advertising as an integral element of the modern reality, influencing the priorities of modern culture and determining mental predispositions and behaviour of its participants; moreover, through its very obviousness, it influences the perception of the past and the artistic heritage, as well as the direction of development of the modern art. With its multiple techniques of effective persuasive influence, advertising proposes various ways to shape the reality,  also in the spheres which do not seem to yield easily to the commercial challenge. The author shows that advertising creates a communication paradigm regulating the life of communities even in the least hospitable conditions (which is clearly evidenced by advertising practices used in the the Warsaw ghetto during World War II). The article also reveals the messages and cognitive benefits resulting from the analysis of advertisements, if they are considered an important social, moral and linguistic document.

This paper focuses on a central category of literary communication, namely, the category of the writer, which is currently under constant scrutiny and is strongly dependent upon codes of popular culture. Th e text presents the various ways in which this notion functions and is understood (for example through its descriptive, evaluative, relative, and contextual framings) as well scrutinizes the rules of its usage in diverse publications and everyday linguistic practice. Th is example sets the stage for a broader problematic referring to the operative functionality of terminology employed by literary studies that is subjected to various test of particular usage. Th e aim of this paper is also the description of such a model of culture that does not merely encompass the process of creating literature but also the ways in which literature is used to gain status on the literary market. Th is text describes the shift from the model of writer as “thinker,” “creator of discourse,” “author of works that merit attention and consideration,” to the model of writer as “celebrity,” “showman,” “idol,” “star,” who limits himself to the presence in the media and in the public sphere.