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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Cultural Aspect of Regional Patriotism Fostered in the Nineteenth-Century Literature of Autochthon Upper Silesians = Kulturowe oblicze regionalnego patriotyzmu krzewionego w XIX-wiecznym piśmiennictwie rodzimych Górnoślązaków

subject

description

This text is part of the author’s research on the literary culture of the nineteenth-century Upper Silesia. The author shows that at the forefront of modern Europe (at the beginning of industrialization and urbanization of the continent) the autochthon writers of Upper Silesia undertook actions aimed at fostering cultural awareness amongst their compatriots, who were considered to belong to a national minority, in order to instil patriotic feelings in them. In the current post-colonial discourse their struggles are recognized as the “voice of the periphery”. Striving to achieve civic maturity in their Polish ecumene, these writers demonstrated considerable knowledge of their own Polish roots as the inhabitants of this region. They assumed they must be aware of their distinctness from the dominant society in the Prussian state. The messages conveyed to their compatriots consisted in emphasizing the common history of Silesians and Poles and remembering the glorious past of the latter. These were the foundations for shaping the sense of identity as well as for creating strong ties with their own land. The development of such an emotional attitude towards the place and its past among the readers allowed for effective building of patriotic attitudes, which was confirmed by contemporary observers of the writers’ efforts. They continued coming to Upper Silesia from other regions of the former Polish Republic to learn about ways of writing “for people.”