Tatry – bezkresne i zamieszkiwane, niszczone i chronione. O antynomiach przestrzeni górskiej w pismach Jana Gwalberta Pawlikowskiego

Abstract

O lice ziemi (For the Face of the Earth) – the collection of writings by Jan Gwalbert Pawlikowski, published in 1938, is interesting not only for historical reasons and as a reference point for contemporary ecological movements. A hybrid work (in which the subject of the Tatra Mountains occupies an important place) also encourages literary research using the tools suggested by geopoetics. The article analyses how mountains are presented in this volume, focusing on the relationship between geographic space and literature. The precursor of ecology, characterising the Tatra Mountains, draws attention to “space, light, silence”. The “holy trinity” taken from the poems by Kazimierz Tetmajer suggests an open mountain space. At the same time, Pawlikowski writes about the peaks as a home, the closest surroundings, giving them the features of a tamed place. On the other hand, he strongly valorises the limitation of mountain space as a result of modernisation processes negatively. The “beautification” and unrestricted access to the Tatra Mountains related to the development of tourism and skiing raised his objection. The effect is the literal transformation of the mountains into a “playground” and the reduction of symbolic meanings, reducing the peaks to a “pile of stones”. Paradoxically, however, closing the mountain space also turns out to be a necessity. The necessary restrictions are related to the idea of creating a national park in the Tatra Mountains, for which Pawlikowski fought. Numerous antinomies, contrasts and paradoxes dynamise the texture of the mountains in O lice ziemi and encourage a holistic view of the Tatras as a cultural landscape.