Miron Białoszewski’s place on the map of Polish literature and culture remains idiosyncratic, and his posthumous career overshadows the recognition he received while alive. He is acclaimed for his unique linguistic register, in which he reenacted orality and radicalized the usage of colloquial language. His quasi-autobiographical “lifewriting” (
życiopisanie), in which he consistently focuses on everyday life, stands apart from his contemporaries’ preoccupation with Polish history and politics. But Białoszewski is also a kind of cult figure. He is seen as a writer who successfully synthesized the aesthetic and the ethical and who, in the restrictive reality of postwar Poland, was able to carve for himself a niche of literary and existential freedom. His alternative…
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Citation: Niżyńska, Joanna. "Miron Białoszewski". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 11 July 2016 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=13571, accessed 23 November 2024.]