„…de Vrijheid woont niet in Poolen”. Analyse van de terminologie over Polen in enkele Nederlandse spectators uit de 18e eeuw

Abstrakt

In this article I discuss the representation of two images at the end of the 18th century: that of the Dutch and that of the Poles, portrayed in Dutch spectators, analysing the imagological theories of Joep Leerssen. Journals like De Borger, De Leerzame Praat-Al and De Vraag-Al focused both on the political and the social situation of Poland in the last years of its independence, but expressed mainly the opinion that it were the Poles themselves who blamed their fate and lost freedom. I also examine the rhetoric that was used by the Dutch authors who differentiated between the ‘Civilised West’ and the ‘Fierce East,’ often writing about the ‘Wild Sarmatians.’