“Don’t be angry with me when I moan and complain”. Letters written by Władysław Witwicki to Roman Ingarden (selection) (edited by Maciej Dombrowski)

Abstract

Among the correspondence of Roman Ingarden with Polish scholars there are 40 surviving letters by Władysław Witwicki to the author of Controversy over the Existence of the World, written in the period of 1918–1923 (the first preserved letter is marked with the date of 28 May 1918, whereas the last one was written on 12 February 1923). The letters of Władysław Witwicki to Roman Ingarden are undoubtedly “philosophical”. The range of topics touched upon by the author of The Enlightened’s Faith is wide – from the polemics on the term of phenomenon (the letter from 31 May 1919), harsh opinions on Leon Chwistek (23 April 1922, 17 May 1922), to the concepts of subject, identity and essence (1 September 1922, 26 September 1922, 25 December 1922). The three presented letters by a Polish psychologist and philosopher fit within his correspondence philosophical polemics with the author of Controversy over the Existence of the World. The first two letters, from 23 April 1922 and 17 Mat 1922 concern Leon Chwistek – in particular his article entitled Wielość rzeczywistości w sztuce (The multitude of realities in art), which was published in “Maski” journal in 1918, and a famous manifesto Nuż w bżuhu. On the other hand, in the letter from 25 December 1922 Witwicki carries out a critical analysis of Ingarden’s article entitled Spór o istotę filozofii (Controversy over the essence of philosophy), which was published in “Przegląd Warszawski” in 1922.