“I am thinking about a new edition…” – contribution to the struggle with the publication of the “Ballads, Romances and Folk Tales” by Stefan Witwicki

Abstract

The article is devoted to editorial issues related to Ballads, Romances and Folk Tales, the second, unpublished edition of Stefan Witwicki’s Ballads and Romances, in which the author made many changes compared to the first edition. As he wrote in the preface to the new edition, it was supposed to “revoke and delete” the first edition. Ballads and Romances, published in the 1824–1825, met with a negative reception by the critics and influenced the reception of the writer’s later works – the author was considered to be the epigone of Adam Mickiewicz. The new edition, despite the author’s determination, has not been published or prepared in the final version for printing. However, it has survived in a manuscript, showing the effects of the poet’s work. The article presents opinions about Witwicki’s youthful ballads – both from the critics and the author himself, who also spoke unfavorably about his own works. The structure of the manuscript and some changes introduced by the author are also described. The issue of editorial problems that may arise during the preparation of the collection for printing was also raised. Despite these doubts, the corrected edition of the ballads should be published – Witwicki’s works are an interesting example of texts shaping the early stage of Polish Romanticism.