Abstract
In the post-war rebirth of Polish culture, Shakespeare became one of the most popular ‘Polish’ playwrights as evidenced by the 1947 Shakespeare Festival. The euphoria over the rebirth of Polish theatrical life did not last long, however. That same year the Congress of Artists introduced Social Realism as the only way to practise art, and with it came a politically correct understanding of Shakespeare. Yet, around 1956 the Bard was appropriated to subvert the system. This chapter presents Shakespeare’s role in the struggle against communism, with particular focus on the fourth centenary of his birth. It shows how his works played a substantial role in assisting Poles become more politically conscious under communism through a theatre of metaphors and allusions.
Under a despotic regime, which oppresses its people, the citizens are terrorized and therefore cannot be held accountable for their actions. They are deprived of their humanity.
Karl Popper (1993, p. 11)
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Notes
- 1.
The greatest tragedy was the loss of life: out of every 1000 citizens, 220 were killed. Material devastation was estimated at $625 per capita (in the currency of that time). The annihilation of Polish culture was calculated at two-fifths of the pre-war state at the International Conference of Reparation in Paris, 1946. Under the pressure of the Western powers, Poland had to cede about 48% of its territory to the Soviet Union.
- 2.
- 3.
‘Korzenie naszego życia teatralnego są zdrowe, mimo kataklizmu wojny i hekatomby okupacji […] z pewnością rozmowa o wystawieniu sztuki [Szekspira] będzie wkrótce miała miejsce w środowisku teatralnym.’ All translations are mine unless indicated otherwise.
- 4.
‘zniszczenie Warszawy jest tak wielkie, że nie nie można je opisać. Wszędzie ruiny. Nie ma ulic. W głębokich wąwozach ruin można było zobaczyć bezkształtne ślady po których poruszały się dorożki. Wszędzie cisza, czasami tylko dobiegał głos ptaków.’
- 5.
British and American governments protested the poll in vain for its blatant violations of Yalta and Potsdam resolutions. In the same year, 1947, the new Sejm created the Small Constitution based on the communist dicta. It meant that the communists could gradually diminish the rights of the non-communists by, for example, suppressing the leading opposition party (Polish People’s Party, PSL). In widely publicized cases, perceived enemies were sentenced to death on trumped-up charges—among them was Witold Pilecki, the organizer of the Auschwitz Resistance. Many resistance fighters were murdered after unjust trials, or forced into exile.
- 6.
‘Nie było w jego interesie aby tolerować dlugotrwający romans pomiędzy polską kulturą I Szekspirem oraz teatrem elżbietańskim.’
- 7.
‘Kanikuła, letnie urlopy, koniec sezonu; stało sie przyczyną, iż o konkursie, o którym mogła mowić cała Polska, przebrząkuje grupa wtajemniczonych.’
- 8.
‘Dla Rosjan Szekspir—nie był tylko ‘obserwatorem życia jak uważają niektórzy zagraniczni szekspirolodzy, lecz był bojownikiem o wielkie humanistyczne idee.’
- 9.
This approach to Shakespeare was possible because, although he had been respected in Polish theatrical tradition, he had never been venerated as a cultural icon. In a way, this limited national appropriation of Shakespeare (and all classics) motivated to a certain extent the artistic assumptions of Socialist Realism.
- 10.
Initially, political regulations required that Western classics such as Lope de Vega, Molière, Corneille, Strindberg, and Schiller should be excluded. Shakespeare was an exception. His treatment as a prophet of Marxism by eminent Soviet critic Mihail M. Morozov’s ensured that his plays never left the Polish stage, even in the darkest years of communism.
- 11.
The system of state-subsidized theatre was established in the late 1940s as a result of the Communists’ cultural agenda. Each city with a population of at least 100,000 was to have a resident repertory company and a puppet theatre.
- 12.
The changes included, among others, withholding the imposed obligatory nationalization, the recognition of the Catholic Church, more lenient censorship, and decentralized management of theatres. Some American movies were shown to the general public, and theatres were allowed to present contemporary Western European dramas. Debate societies appeared in which heated discussions on political matters also took place.
- 13.
In Kott’s monograph, Shakespeare’s texts also spoke to the needs of the post-war generation. They allegedly revealed ‘the heroes’ of that time, portraits of contemporary human beings. It is Shakespeare as an existentialist, almost nihilist, an exponent of the futility of any political system. It is Shakespeare as the father of the theatre of the absurd and an advocate of sexuality and bawdiness in literature (Kujawińska Courtney 2006).
- 14.
Once the Censorship Section of the State Security Office gave its permission to have a play staged, which it almost always did in the case of the classics, it was expected to send their representative to sit at the audience and watch both the performance and the reaction of the viewers. Yet, in majority of cases unable to penetrate the political allusions and metaphors skilfully incorporated into the theatrical mise-en-scène, the censors usually treated the stagings of Shakespeare plays as a product of the Elizabethan era.
- 15.
‘Koło się zamknęło, historia wróciła do swego początku, [c]zy się raz jeszcze poowtórzy?’
- 16.
‘Partia, na której ciąży odpowiedzialność za kształtowanie świadomosci narodu i wychowywanie go w duchu socjalizmu nie może być ani obojętna, ani neutralna wobec treści ideowych I moralnych, reprezentowanych w twórczości I działalności kulturalnej.’
- 17.
Displaying Polish translations, monographs, essays, and arts, the exhibition organized by the Warsaw University Library, the Polish Academy of Sciences, and the Society of Bibliophiles was presented in Warszawa. The public of Warszawa, Kraków, and Łódż were able to see a Shakespeare exhibition presenting recent British critical works and selected photographs of theatrical productions (Niećko 1965, pp. 233–41).
- 18.
These lands were taken from Poland on the basis of the Potsdam Conference (1945) under which the Soviet Union thrust the new Poland’s western frontier to the Oder-Neisse Line, retaining the Curzon Line as the Soviet boundary.
- 19.
The Letter evoked international support on the part of eminent writers and artists. In many countries (i.e. in Britain, Italy, France, and the USA), articles appeared in leading dailies criticizing Polish Communist regime for its suppression of freedom of expression. At the same time, in Poland, some endorsers of the Letter were punished with imprisonment.
- 20.
As his autobiography testifies, he was never actively involved in any political movements (Helsztyński 1987).
- 21.
See Erica Sheen’s chapter in this volume for a discussion of ‘westernization’ in the German context.
- 22.
It should be stressed that audience reactions to Shakespeare’s lines delivered on the stage frequently did not reflect the director’s interpretation. In many cases, progressive elements of society, frustrated by Communist subjection, treated Shakespeare’s plays as a subversive discourse operating under oppressive political conditions, even though the director’s intention did not embrace it.
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Courtney, K.K. (2016). Celebrating Shakespeare under the Communist Regime in Poland. In: Sheen, E., Karremann, I. (eds) Shakespeare in Cold War Europe. Global Shakespeares. Palgrave Pivot, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-51974-0_3
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