Popularisation of Nicolaus Copernicus and His Achievements in the Polish People's Republic

Abstract

 The aim of this paper is not to conduct a substantive analysis of the scientific achievements concering Nicolaus Copernicus. Nor do I engage in discussions regarding the concept known as the Copernican Upheaval or the Copernican Revolution. After 1944, during the period of the Polish People's Republic, communist authorities assumed ideological control over science. Scientific work served as a tool of power in constructing a new social consciousness. The task of professional science popularization, previously carried out by scholars as authors, was replaced by a system of popularization led by journalists and party instructors. This led to the establishment of the journal "Problems" (1945) and the Society for the Popularization of Culture and Science (1950). The system of popularization encompassed knowledge about Nicolaus Copernicus, who had already become an icon of academic science in the 19th century. The communist authorities associated Copernicus' figure with the role of the "new science" icon. This objective was based on applying the criterion of progressiveness in evaluating Copernicus' and other renowned scholars' works, which, in reality, had an ideological connotation of development. This criterion determined the activities of the Polish Society of Naturalists named after Copernicus, as well as the papers on Copernicus presented at the First Congress of Polish Science and during the Copernican Sessions (September 15-16, 1953). Copernicus' figure continued to be ideologized by the party-state authorities even after the Stalinist period.

Emphasizing Copernicus' role in the construction of a scientific worldview, the authorities undermined the religious beliefs based on biblical history. Remnants of the popularization period can be seen in the nomenclature of urban objects, institutions, as well as Copernican monuments and celebrations