From her point of view - woman's anti-world in the poetry of Anna Świrszczyńska

How does one begin to write about Anna Swirszczynska? Skimming through the diverse articles written about Swirszczynska in Poland, one begins to wonder, whether it is possible to write about her at all with enthusiasm. "Unfashionable", "marginal", "not at all esteemed": for a long time the poet was repeatedly described in terms contradiction between her marginal position and the undeniable greatness of her work. "Misunderstood by hercontemporaries"is what immediately springs to mind. To say this, however, should in itself be a compliment, since it implies a future recognition. Herpoetry has sometimes been described as "precursory", which has a positive reverberation. And this has proved to be true: surprising and brilliant, even though uneven as regards its literary quality, twenty-three years after the poet's death, Swirszczynska's work remains an open challenge.

Renata Ingbrant is a slavist attached to the Department of Slavic Languages and at Stockholm University and the Baltic and East European Graduate School (BEEGS) at Sodertorn University College.