Michał Głowiński (4 November 1934 – 29 September 2023) was a Polish

philologist Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also defined as the study of ...

, historian and literary theorist specializing in the history of

Polish literature Polish literature is the literary tradition of Poland. Most Polish literature has been written in the Polish language, though other languages used in Poland over the centuries have also contributed to Polish literary traditions, including Latin, ...

. Głowiński was a professor of humanities and member of the

Polish Academy of Sciences The Polish Academy of Sciences (, PAN) is a Polish state-sponsored institution of higher learning. Headquartered in Warsaw, it is responsible for spearheading the development of science across the country by a society of distinguished scholars a ...

and the

Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences The Polish Academy of Arts and Sciences or Polish Academy of Learning (, PAU), headquartered in Kraków and founded in 1872, is one of two institutions in contemporary Poland having the nature of an academy of sciences (the other being the Po ...

. Głowiński was a professor at the Institute of Literary Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences and a Member of the

Collegium Invisibile Collegium Invisibile is an Learned society, academic society founded in 1995 in Warsaw, Poland, Warsaw that affiliates outstanding Polish students in the humanities and science with distinguished scholars in accordance with the idea of a libera ...

. Głowiński wrote about 30 books on Polish studies. The most famous include, ''Order, Chaos, Meaning'' (1968), ''The Young-Polish Novel'' (1969), ''

Black Seasons Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''Psyc ...

'' (Czarne sezony) (1998) and ''Rings of Alienation''. Głowiński wrote extensively on the language of Communist propaganda and his experience as a young Jewish boy in the WW2 Polish Ghettos.

Early life

Michał Głowiński was born in

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

on 4 November 1934. At the beginning of the Second World War, Głowiński and his family were placed in the ghetto in

Pruszków Pruszków is a city in east-central Poland, capital of Pruszków County in the Masovian Voivodeship. Pruszków is located along the western edge of the Warsaw metropolitan area. Pruszków is the largest city in the Warsaw metropolitan area outs ...

and later transferred to the

Warsaw Ghetto The Warsaw Ghetto (, officially , ; ) was the largest of the Nazi ghettos during World War II and the Holocaust. It was established in November 1940 by the Nazi Germany, German authorities within the new General Government territory of Occupat ...

. Głowiński was taken to the Warsaw ghetto in 1939, at five years old. Głowiński was saved from the Warsaw Ghetto by

Irena Sendler Irena Stanisława Sendler (; 15 February 1910 – 12 May 2008), operating under the ''nom de guerre'' Jolanta, was a Polish humanitarian, social worker, and nurse who served in the Polish Underground Resistance during World War II in Ge ...

and placed in the care facility of the Congregation of the Blessed Virgin Mary's Servants in Turkowice. In his memoirs, ''Black Seasons'', Głowiński devoted four chapters to the orphanage in Turkowice, where the cruelty of some children towards him is contrasted with the goodness of others. Głowiński and his parents stayed there until the liquidation of the ghetto, in July 1942 when the Nazis ordered the liquidation of the ghetto. Half a million Jewish residents of the ghetto were taken to

Umschlagplatz ''Umschlagplatz'' () was the term used during The Holocaust to denote the holding areas adjacent to railway stations in occupied Poland where Jews from ghettos were assembled for deportation to Nazi death camps. The largest collection point ...

and from there to the

Treblinka Treblinka () was the second-deadliest extermination camp to be built and operated by Nazi Germany in Occupation of Poland (1939–1945), occupied Poland during World War II. It was in a forest north-east of Warsaw, south of the Treblinka, ...

gas chambers. After initially hiding in a cellar, Głowiński and his parents were identified and selected for Treblinka. They were saved, though, thanks to a Jewish police officer, whom his father knew, and who helped them escape to Warsaw.

After the war

Głowiński studied Polish studies at the

University of Warsaw The University of Warsaw (, ) is a public university, public research university in Warsaw, Poland. Established on November 19, 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country, offering 37 different fields of study as well ...

after the war and graduated with a master's degree in 1955. In 1954, Głowiński debuted with a study of

Adolf Rudnicki Adolf Rudnicki, born Aron Hirschhorn (February 19, 1912, Żabno − November 14, 1990, Warsaw) was a Polish author and essayist, best known for his works about The Holocaust and the Jewish resistance in Poland during World War II. Biography He ...

's "Manfred." Głowiński was a scholarship holder at the Department of Theory of Literature under from 1955 to 1958. At the same time, Głowiński started to engage in critical practice, especially reviewing poetry collections in publications such as "Życie Literackie" and " Twórczoci. " From 1958, Głowiński worked at the

' Institute of Literary Study. Graduating in 1967 with a dissertation titled "A collection of studies in the history and theory of the Polish novel." Głowiński earned the academic title of professor in 1976. Głowiński joined the Scientific Courses Society as a founding member in 1978. On 20 August 1980, Głowiński signed a letter to the communist authorities signed by 64 academics, authors, and journalists urging them to dialogue with the striking workers. Głowiński was promoted to full professor in 1986. In 1999 Głowiński spoke about Polish academia under communism. Głowiński said that authorities looked more about his knowledge of Marxism rather than literacy. Głowiński recalled his disappointment with the scientific level of his lectures, often on Marxism rather than literature, and the beginnings of his fascination with linguistics. Głowiński chaired the institute's Scientific Council since 1990. Głowiński was a member of the Polish Authors Association and the Warsaw Scientific Society. Głowiński published an autobiographical novel, named "Circles of Strangeness" in 2010. This book also was his public

coming out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBTQ people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. This is often framed and debated as a privacy issue, ...

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

. Michał Głowiński died on 29 September 2023, at the age of 88.

Awards and distinctions

Głowiński had four honorary degrees. In 2002, Głowiński was honored with the

Kazimierz Wyka Kazimierz Wyka (19 March 1910 – 19 January 1975) was a Polish literary historian, literary critic, and professor at the Jagiellonian University in Kraków following World War II. He was a deputy to the Polish parliament (Sejm) from 1952 to 1956 ...

. In 2004, Głowiński was awarded by the Alfred Toepfer Foundation in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

. In January 2007, Głowiński was awarded the gold medal for Merit to Culture - Gloria Artis. In 2008, Głowiński became a laureate of the literary award of the Polish PEN Club, with the

Jan Parandowski __NOTOC__ Jan Parandowski (11 May 1895 – 26 September 1978) was a Polish writer, essayist, and translator. Best known for his works relating to classical antiquity, he was also the president of the Polish PEN Club between 1933 and 1978, w ...

prize. On 8 March 2013, for outstanding services in researching, documenting and commemorating the history of March '68. Głowiński was decorated with the Officer's Cross of the

Order of Polonia Restituta The Order of Polonia Restituta (, ) is a Polish state decoration, state Order (decoration), order established 4 February 1921. It is conferred on both military and civilians as well as on alien (law), foreigners for outstanding achievements in ...

. Nominated four times for the

Nike Literary Award The Nike Literary Award (, pronounced ) is a literary prize awarded each year for the best book of a single living author writing in Polish and published the previous year. It is widely considered the most important award for Polish literature. ...

: in 1997 for Speech in a state of siege, in 1999 for Black Seasons, in 2001 for Ulysses' Day and other sketches on non-mythological topics, and in 2011 for Circles of Strangeness. On 11 December 2016, Głowiński received the Lodz Literary Award.

Julian Tuwim Julian Tuwim (13 September 1894 – 27 December 1953), known also under the pseudonym Oldlen as a lyricist, was a Jewish-Polish poet, born in Łódź, then part of the Russian Partition. He was educated in Łódź and in Warsaw where he studied ...

, awarded to him for "not only literary but also ethical standards" and "commitment to the world's affairs."

Publications

* ''Tuwim's poetics and the Polish literary tradition'' (1962) * ''Order, Chaos, Meaning'' (1968) * ''Young Poland novel'' (1969) * ''Novel Games'' (1973) * ''Pickup Styles'' (1977) * ''Newspeak in Polish'' (1990) * ''Disguised Myths'' (1990) * ''March talk. Comments on words. 1966-1971'' (1991) * ''Ritual and demagogy. Thirteen Sketches on Degraded Art'' (1992) * ''Poetics and surroundings'' (1992) * ''Peereliade. Comments on words. 1976-1981'' (1993) * ''Speech under siege. 1982-1985'' (1996) * ''The Underworld Presented: Sketches on the Poetry of

Bolesław Leśmian Bolesław Leśmian (born Bolesław Lesman; 22 January 1877The exact date of his birth is disputed: the birth certificate gives 1877, Leśmian himself used 1878, while the date on his tombstone is 1879. – 5 November 1937) was a Polish poet, ...

'' (1998) * ''Black Seasons'' (1998) * ''The Ending'' (1999) * ''Ulysses Day and Other Sketches on Non-mythological Subjects'' (2000) * ''Magdalenka made of wholemeal bread'' (2001, novel) * '' Gombrowicz and super-literature'' (2002) * ''The History of One Poplar'' (2003) * ''Wings and Heel'' (2004) * ''Irony'' (2005) * ''Footbridge over time'' (2006) * ''Telimena's internal monologue and other sketches'' (2007) * ''Plots discontinued. Little Sketches 1998–2007'' (2008) * ''The circles of alienation. An Autobiographical Tale'' (2010) * ''Tsarist cup. Sixteen Stories'' (2016)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Glowinski, Michal 1934 births 2023 deaths Polish philologists University of Warsaw alumni Members of the Polish Academy of Learning Members of the Polish Academy of Sciences Warsaw Ghetto inmates Polish Holocaust survivors Fellows of Collegium Invisibile Officers of the Order of Polonia Restituta Recipients of the Gold Medal for Merit to Culture – Gloria Artis Polish gay men 20th-century Polish Jews 21st-century Polish Jews 20th-century Polish LGBTQ people 21st-century Polish LGBTQ people Jewish Polish writers Writers from Warsaw