Żaby, żebracy i Bóg: pojęcie cudu w opowiadaniu Stanisława Szukalskiego „Niemy śpiewak”

Abstrakt

The essay attempts to offer an analysis and interpretation of a short story, The Mute Singer, by Stanisław Szukalski (1893–1987), Polish sculptor, painter and theoretician of art. The short story is supposed to be part of the autobiographical memories of the author (the narrator, Staś, a small boy, might be the author’s alter ego), yet the events it presents verge on the magical. The title character gives concerts for frogs and for the beggars who come to Gidle at the time of the parish fair, then dies, apparently out of exhaustion. The concerts are presented as moments of mystical communion and contrasted with folk religiosity. The essay focuses on Szukalski’s treatment of miracle, which seems to be a major theme of the story.