Powieści współczesne Henryka Sienkiewicza w kontekście twórczości Fiodora Dostojewskiego

Abstract

The subject matter of the analysed text are contemporary novels by Henryk Sienkiewicz: Bez dogmatu, Rodzina Połanieckich and by Fiodor Dostojewski: Bracia Karamazow, Idiota and, in particular, Zbrodnia i kara. The output of both writers is located within the framework of the European model of the psychological novel of the end of the 19th century. The author indicates typological similarities of the prose and at the same time asks questions about individual distinguishing features concerning the technique, aesthetic outlook and philosophy of life. Genetic references for Sienkiewicz’s novels are placed within the Russian Romanticism, particularly in Alexander Pushkhin. The author concludes that the novels by the Polish and the Russian writers are similar in terms of general plot outlines, such as the structure of biography of protagonists and emphasis on their psychological self-analysis. They are differentiated by an original approach to ethical and moral issues such as faith, suffering, expiation for deeds, possessive love, or growth in spiritual revival.