The book aims at showing the functions of tragic and grotesque motives in the literature and paraliterature at the end of the Renaissance and at the beginning of the Baroque. Analysing a series of literary and journalistic works, the author also makes an attempt to explain a peculiar understanding of the notion of “tragidity” in the Old-Polish culture. In the old Polish journalism, tragic and grotesque elements are often connected with one another, and penetrate one another, making it difficult for the researcher to define clear borders between them. The author emphasises this fact, especially in the analysis of a widely-understood Old-Polish “paraliterature”. In literary works of high artistic quality, such as Laments by Jan Kochanowski, the interpretation of which
can be found in chapter II, the author from Czarnolesie makes a reference to the ancient understanding of tragidity taken from the classic traditions of Greek tragedies.
The meaning of the two notions, both tragidity and grotesqe, has evolved within centuries, however, nowadays, a greater number of meanings is ascribed to the category of tragidity, having richer traditions in the literary practice of the Greek tragics, and poetic theories in the old centuries and the latest ones. The evolution of notions, in fine with the attempt to order the already-existed scientific evidence on the subject in question was included in chapter I. In the subsequent parts, detailed analyses of various works being the source of cultural centres of the former Republic of Poland were conducted. It was not only Jan Kochanowski (writing
Laments at the end of 1580s) who seemed to be inclined towards the Greek meanings, but also
Maciej Kazimierz Sarbiewski, a poet and theoretician, creating in the first part of the 17th century.
In his theoretical treatise on poesis dramática, Sarbiewski was trying to clearly stick to the principles by Aristotle, referring to the notion of tragidity and ways of constructing tragedy. At the same time, he was against literary tendencies of his own epoch, treating tragidity according to a fixed pattern, on the basis of the tragedy by Seneka. Both Jan Kochanowski and Maciej K. Sarbiewski seem to preserve a thinking tradition of the Renaissance humanist scholars. Further on (chapter 3), eschatological works, about defeats, novelties, didactic treatises created mostly in the circles of the Catholic clergy, in the atmosphere of postTrident spirituality
are discussed. These works, moralistic in nature, constitute a warning against hell and God’s fear.
They also agitate to fear and penance because, as moralists suggest, sin is the greatest unhappiness
of man. Here, tragidity is construed of as a “negative emotional tone” — a transition from
happiniess into unhappiness, which was adequate to the thoughts expressed in some poetics (starting from the Middle Ages), which were transforming the meaning of the ancient, mainly Aristotle’s understanding of tragidity.
Imperfection of the surrounding world and man was noticed by mockers from the manorial
circle of The Republic of Babina (chapter IV), as well as pleb writers of the so called picaresque
literature (chapter V). The two cultural circles of the former Poland showed their attitude to reality
other than tragic. Grotesque appears in their texts in its various forms: both this cheerful one
assimilating the evil of this world, and the bad one, revealing not only a non-conformist attitude
towards dangers of the 17th century civilisation and historical reality, as well as anxieties and fears
of mysterious being. Tragic and grotesque attitudes, in spite of differences suggested by the author of the book, have something in common, i.e. they reflect a conflict between the human conceptions of life and
life itself. However, there is always some space for comism in grotesque (even though its effect constitutes sinister or mad laugh, expressing not only the individuals fear but also his/her helplessness). The tragic attitude, however, focuses on concentration, seriousness, as well as an attempt to reasonably order the world. A representation of both differentiating and common features with respect to both attitudes treats about the specificity of a new perspective on the phenomenon included in the title of the book.
