Polish Antigone

Abstract

A particular text often circulates in a number of translations. Sophocles’ Antigone is one of the most often translated Greek tragedies into Polish. From the beginning, its translations have been influenced by Polish history, politics and social conditions. The partitions of Poland in the 19th century, the World War II or the Martial Law in Poland in 1981 had their impact on Polish translations, both literary and theatrical, of Antigone. Every succeeding translation enters into a dialogue with the previous ones, often addressing other literary works. Thus, translation never ends, but consists of different levels made by the succeeding interpretations or re-readings of the original In this paper I would like to discuss four chosen translations of Antigone written by Morawski at the end of the 19th century, Morstin in 1938, Osterwa in 1939/1940, and one stage adaptation by Wajda from 1984. All of them give us a certain, specifically Polish image not only of Sophocles’ tragedy, but most of all of its leading character, Antigone.