Przestrzeń dojrzewania w Zmorach Emila Zegadłowicza

Abstract

The article presents the individual growing-up process shown in Zmory (Nightmares) by Emil Zegadłowicz. The start thesis is that novel, playing with autographic and geographic references, has features of a parable, and its main theme is placing a growing individual in the world and universe. The analysis of the phenomenon includes: the topos of educational journey, development story genre conventions, and most of all the decisions of anthropologists regarding the ways of “practicing space” through creating a map and planning a route (M. de Certeau) and functioning of anthropologic places (M. Augé). The Author refers both to the geographic and historic realities, as well as ways of giving them symbolic meanings. The study is focused on the following issues: existence of Mikołaj Srebrempisany in a social space – exploring it and taming it; the internal world of a hero – meaning the space of: dreams, daydreams, experiences; and experiencing loneliness by him. The divagations and analyses reach the conclusion that the Nightmares is one of the latest depictions of growing up, presented in the spirit of tradition of a development story and originating in a 19th century formation, where recognizing and becoming placed in the anthropologic space leads to self-cognition and liberation of an individual.