Stefan Grabiński (26 February 1887 – 12 November 1936) was a Polish writer of fantastic literature and horror stories. He is sometimes referred to as the "Polish Poe" or "Polish

Lovecraft Howard Phillips Lovecraft (, ; August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American writer of weird, science, fantasy, and horror fiction. He is best known for his creation of the Cthulhu Mythos. Born in Providence, Rhode Island, Lovecraft ...

", although his works are often

surrealistic Surrealism is an art movement, art and cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists aimed to allow the unconscious mind to express itself, often resulting in the depiction of illogical or dreamlike s ...

or explicitly erotic in a way that sets him apart from both. He was very interested in

parapsychology Parapsychology is the study of alleged psychic phenomena (extrasensory perception, telepathy, teleportation, precognition, clairvoyance, psychokinesis (also called telekinesis), and psychometry (paranormal), psychometry) and other paranormal cla ...

, magic and

demonology Demonology is the study of demons within religious belief and myth. Depending on context, it can refer to studies within theology, religious doctrine, or occultism. In many faiths, it concerns the study of a hierarchy of demons. Demons may be n ...

and in the works of the German Expressionist filmmakers.

Biography

Grabiński was born in

Kamionka Strumiłowa Kamianka-Buzka (, ) is a List of cities in Ukraine, city in Lviv Raion, Lviv Oblast, of western Ukraine. It hosts the administration of Kamianka-Buzka urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. The city was previously known as Kamianka St ...

, then part of Poland (present-day Kamianka-Buzka, Ukraine), situated by the

Bug River The Bug or Western Bug is a major river in Central Europe that flows through Belarus (border), Poland, and Ukraine, with a total length of .Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

. He graduated from the local high school in 1905, then studied

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, ...

and

philology Philology () is the study of language in Oral tradition, oral and writing, written historical sources. It is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics with strong ties to etymology. Philology is also de ...

at the former

Jan Kazimierz University The Ivan Franko National University of Lviv (named after Ivan Franko, ) is a state-sponsored university in Lviv, Ukraine. Since 1940 the university is named after Ukrainian poet Ivan Franko. The university is the oldest institution of higher ...

, which is presently the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv. While a student there, he discovered that he had tuberculosis, which was common in his family. As he was an ardent

pantheist Pantheism can refer to a number of philosophical and religious beliefs, such as the belief that the universe is God, or panentheism, the belief in a non-corporeal divine intelligence or God out of which the universe arisesAnn Thomson; Bodies ...

, fond of

Christian mysticism Christian mysticism is the tradition of mystical practices and mystical theology within Christianity which "concerns the preparation f the personfor, the consciousness of, and the effect of ..a direct and transformative presence of God" ...

and Eastern religious texts, as well as

Theosophy Theosophy is a religious movement established in the United States in the late 19th century. Founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and based largely on her writings, it draws heavily from both older European philosophies such as Neop ...

and

, this discovery only enhanced his occult worldview and approach to writing. Upon graduating in 1911, he began work as a secondary school teacher in Lviv. During this time, he also traveled extensively, visiting Austria, Italy, and Romania. From 1917 to 1927, he was a teacher in

Przemyśl Przemyśl () is a city in southeastern Poland with 56,466 inhabitants, as of December 2023. Data for territorial unit 1862000. In 1999, it became part of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Subcarpathian Voivodeship. It was previously the capital of Prz ...

. He first began to write short fiction in 1906 and his mother was his first reader and critic. A collection of short stories, ''Exceptions: In the Dark of Faith'' (), written under the pen name Stefan Żalny (''Żalny'' means 'doleful') became his self-published debut in 1909. These tales have never been judged highly. The general opinion being that his hyperbolical, at times anachronistic literary style couldn't be appreciated by the majority of his readers. His second volume of short stories, ''On the Hill of Roses'' (), was published nine years later, and received modest critical approval. However, this book impressed Polish decadent writer and literary critic

Karol Irzykowski Karol Irzykowski (23 January 1873 – 2 November 1944) was a Polish writer, literary critic, film theoretician, and chess player. Between 1933 and 1939 in the Second Polish Republic he was a member of the prestigious Polish Academy of Literature ...

. They became good friends, and Irzykowski supported Grabiński's career. In 1920, Grabiński presented a collection of his mystic railway stories called ''The Motion Demon'' (). Eventually, the following collections of short stories appeared: ''Pilgrim’s Madness'' (, 1920), ''An Incredible Story'' () and ''The Book of Fire'' (, 1922). His longest prose work, ''Passion'' (), written in 1930, was inspired by his trip to Italy, most notably Venice. The symbolic imagery of Grabiński's works was embodied by eerie creatures, such as

incubi An Incubus () is a male demon in human form in folklore that seeks to have sexual intercourse with sleeping women; the corresponding spirit in female form is called a succubus. Parallels exist in many cultures. In medieval Europe, union with ...

, witches,

doppelgänger A doppelgänger ( ), sometimes spelled doppelgaenger or doppelganger, is a ghostly double of a living person, especially one that haunts its own fleshly counterpart. In fiction and mythology, a doppelgänger is often portrayed as a ghostly or p ...

s, spirits of various sorts, and mysterious messages from the underworld. His fiction is usually considered bizarre because it is permeated with magic, occult eroticism,

parapsychological Parapsychology is the study of alleged psychic phenomena (extrasensory perception, telepathy, teleportation, precognition, clairvoyance, psychokinesis (also called telekinesis), and psychometry) and other paranormal claims, for example, those r ...

effects, and Oriental mysticism. A quote from his short story "", is said to reflect his usual state of mind: "I cannot free myself from that strong, commanding voice which speaks to me, or from that mysterious power which pushes aside objects, contemptuous of their size; I am still wearied by endless monotonous roads that led nowhere. That is why I am not a perfect spirit, only an 'insane person', someone who arouses in normal people pity, contempt or fear. But I do not complain. Even like this, I am better off than those of healthy mind.” His tuberculosis worsened and he was forced to spend more time seeking treatment. In 1931, he settled in the resort and spa town of Brzuchowice (now

Briukhovychi Briukhovychi (; ) is a rural settlement in Lviv Raion, Lviv Oblast, Ukraine. It belongs to Lviv urban hromada, one of the hromadas of Ukraine. Between 1939 and 1942, and again from 1944 to 1957, Briukhovychi was the center of Briukhovychi Raion. ...

) where, despite some recent financial return for his writings, he increasingly fell into obscurity and was abandoned by most of his friends. In 1936, he died in extreme poverty in

Lviv Lviv ( or ; ; ; see #Names and symbols, below for other names) is the largest city in western Ukraine, as well as the List of cities in Ukraine, fifth-largest city in Ukraine, with a population of It serves as the administrative centre of ...

and is buried there at .

Reception

His work was largely forgotten until after World War II. In 1949 two of his short stories were reprinted in a collection edited by

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 ...

. In 1950s, some of his works were reprinted, and literary historian wrote a monograph on his work. Later his stories were promoted by the science-fiction critic, and some appeared in the , published by

Wydawnictwo Literackie Wydawnictwo Literackie (abbreviated WL, lit. "Literary Press") is a Kraków-based Polish publishing house, which has been referred to as one of Poland's "most respected". Company history Since its foundation in 1953, Wydawnictwo Literackie has ...

. In an interview, Lem admits the influence of Grabiński's horror stories on his early works, including "

Terminus Terminus may refer to: Ancient Rome *Terminus (god), a Roman deity who protected boundary markers Transport *Terminal train station or terminus, a railway station serving as an end destination *Bus terminus, a bus station serving as an end des ...

". In the 1980s some of his works were translated to German. At that time a number of his stories have been translated into English by Miroslaw Lipinski , first self-published or published in small press, until in 1993 they were released by

Dedalus Press Dedalus Press is one of the major publishers of contemporary poetry in Ireland (with more than 150 titles currently in print). History Founded in 1985 by poet and fiction writer John F. Deane, since January 2005 it has been run by poet and ed ...

as ''

The Dark Domain ''The Dark Domain'' is a 1993 short story collection by Stefan Grabiński, translated to English by Miroslaw Lipinski and published in the United Kingdom by Dedalus Books for their ''Dedalus European Classics'' series. Contents The book marke ...

''. Further stories of his have been translated since: ''In Sarah's House: Stories'' (2007), ''The Motion Demon'' ''(2005),'' ''On the Hill of Roses'' (2012) and ''Masters of the Weird Tale: Stefan Grabinski'' (2021). He has been referred to as "Polish Poe" or "Polish

". His story "Szamota's Mistress" was adapted to film as part of a

B Movie A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Classical Hollywood cinema, Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second ...

trilogy called '' Evil Streets''.

Bibliography

Novels

* (''Salamander'') (1924) * (''Baphomet's Shadow'') (1926) * (''The Cloister and the Sea'') (1928) * (''Itongo Island'') (1936)

Short stories

* "" (''The Tawny Owl'') (1906) * "" (''The Frenzied Farmhouse'') (1908) * "" (''The Vampire'') (1909) * "" (''The Earth's Revenge'') (1909) * "" (''The Curse'') (1909) * "" (''Death Knell'') (1909) * "" (''On the Hill of Roses'') (1909) * "" (''The Orchard of the Dead'') (1909) * "" (''At the Villa by the Sea'') (1912) * "" (''Shadow'') (1913) * "" (''Fumes'') (1913) * "" (''At Sara's House'') (1915) * "" (''The Grey Room'') (1915) * "" (''On a Tangent'') (1918) * "" (''Strabismus'') (1918) * "" (''The Problem of Czelawa'') (1918) * "" (''The Siding'') (1918) * "" (''Projection'') (1919) * "" (''The Lady from the White Castle'') (1919) * "" (''Ksenia'') (1919) * "" (''Engine Driver Grot'') (1919) * "" (''The Wandering Train'') (1919) * "" (''Signals'') (1919) * "" (''The Sloven'') (1919) * "Ultima Thule" (''Ultima Thule'') (1919) * "" (''Saturnin Sektor'') (1920) * "" (''False Alarm'') (1920) * "" (''King Nenufar'') (1920) * "" (''The Miracle of Zywia'') (1921) * "" (''Too Soon") (1921) * "" (''White Wyrak'') (1922) * "" (The Museum of Purgatorial Spirits) (1922) * "" (''The Strange Station'') (1922) * '"" (''Vengeance of the Elementals'') (1922) * "" (''Szamota's Mistress'') (1922) * "" (''The Attic'') (1930) * "" (''Reconciliation'') (1930) * "" (''Nightmare'') (1930) * "" (''Projections'') (1930)

Collections

* (''From the Unusual. In the Shadows of Belief'') (1909) * (''On the Hill of Roses'') (1918) * (''The Motion Demon'') (1919) * (''Mad Pilgrim'') (1920) * (''An Eerie Tale'') (1922) * (''The Book of Fire'') (1922) * (''Passion'') (1930)

Plays

* (''Dark Forces'') * (''All-Souls' Day'')

Titles in English

Translated by Mirosław Lipinski: * ''

'', Dedalus Classics (1993) * ''On the Hill of Roses'', Hieroglyphic Press (2012) * ''The Motion Demon'', CreateSpace (2013) * ''Passion'', NoHo Press (2014) * ''Masters of the Weird Tale'' (2022) Translated by Wiesiek Powaga: * ''In Sarah's House'', CB Editions (2007) * ''

The Dedalus Book of Polish Fantasy ''The Dedalus Book of Polish Fantasy'' is a 1996 anthology of Polish speculative fiction, edited and translated by Wiesiek Powaga and published in the United Kingdom by Dedalus Books in their ''Dedalus Books of Fantasy'' series of European litera ...

'' (2006) Contains two stories by Grabiński Translated by Anthony Sciscione: * ''Orchard of the Dead and Other Macabre Tales'' (2023)

References

External links

*
Page at Internet Speculative Fiction Database
* *

Grabinski on Facebook

101 Weird Writers #45 — Stefan Grabiński

Stefan Grabiński

In search of Stefan Grabinski

China Miéville bemoans the dearth of translations of Stefan Grabinski's pioneering horror fiction
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grabinski, Stefan 1887 births 1936 deaths 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis Polish horror writers Polish male novelists Polish male short story writers 20th-century Polish novelists 20th-century short story writers 20th-century Polish male writers Tuberculosis deaths in Ukraine Weird fiction writers