Juliusza Słowackiego dwa wiersze „kwarantannowe”

Abstrakt

The article concerns two poems by Juliusz Słowacki, written during two quarantine periods during his trip to the Middle East and the Holy Land. Although underestimated and overlooked by researchers, they are worthy of academic attention not only because of their preoccupation with conditions of travel and isolation which inform their background, but also because they precede other poetic letters from this journey, written long after its completion. As such, they retain the value of “live recorings”, written under the influence of current sensations and impressions. The first of them — Do Zenona Brzozowskiego — dedicated to a travel mate he journeyed with during his New Year’s expedition through the desert of El-Arish, stylized as an occasional congratulatory poem. The poem, which contains an expressive memento mori, alludes to a mysterious, life-threatening event. The second of the letters, Z listu do księgarza (written in July of 1837 during the final quar-antine while shipbound to the Italian port of Livorno), was addressed to Eustachy Januszkiewicz. Not only is it a kaleidoscopic summary of the journey (on which especially the stay in Egipt left an indelible mark), but also a demonstrative announcement of the return — including declarations of increased activity and competition in the literary field.