Can we reconstruct the meaning of a literary work? Edward Porębowicz, Jan Andrzej Morsztyn and French poetry

Abstract

Edward Porębowicz in a study Andrzej Morsztyn, przedstawiciel baroku w poezji polskiej (1893), gives new meaning to Morsztyn’s work, demonstrating that his poems are not part of the romantic aesthetic but they fully belong to the baroque current. Thus, Porębowicz proves that one can reconstruct the meaning of a literary work. However, a very wide erudition and general knowledge of culture are necessary. The critic succeeded in rectifying the erroneous interpretation of Morsztyn’s poetry, then prevailing, thanks to his competent and rigorous comparative proofreading of ancient Greek, Latin as well as modern Italian, French, Spanish and Polish texts.