The Franciscan Undercurrent in Polish Literature as Exemplified by the Works of Józef Wittlin and Roman Brandstaetter

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The paper discusses the topic which is little known for the scholars in the field of literary and religious studies outside of Poland, as it focuses on the literary output of two minor Polish authors, Józef Wittlin and Roman Brandstaetter, and the Franciscan undercurrent in their works. It is presented in spiritual, cultural, literary, and biographical context. Importantly, the choice of the authors is justified by their similar approach to the Franciscan tradition and the figure of St. Francis as sources of the spiritual experience important for people who live in the conflicted era.

The paper is well-structured and very informative, and it gives a solid overview of the Franciscan tradition in the works of Wittlin and Brandstaetter. Parallels between Brandstaetter's deliberate anachronisms and Cimabue and Giotto's methods of depiction seem particularly impressive.

However, the paper lacks presentation of the previous influences of this tradition on Polish culture. They are discussed very briefly in one sentence (lines 95-97), which definitely should be extended to a short paragraph. Possibly, some parts of the Conclusions section may be transferred here, while the conclusions themselves should be developed and focused more on comparison between two writers and their influence on shaping the Franciscan tradition than on repeating the observation already made in the main body of the paper.

Another part which should be slightly expanded is the presentation of the research on religious aspects of Polish literature (lines 27-29). It is called "relatively under-researched"; however, the author should definitely mention briefly those works which do exist, especially those authored by Stefan Sawicki and other researchers from KUL.

It would be also useful to add a methodological reflection in the introductory part of the paper, as well as to formulate the research hypothesis about the importance and livingness of Franciscan tradition which characterizes both writers chosen for analysis. This would support and justify their choice.

Lines 244-246 seem vague (especially the phrase about Wittlin "only fully grasped") and need reformulating. At the same time, perhaps also some reflection is needed about the possibility to understand St. Francis' sanctity with and without being baptized. It opens an interesting gate for further discussions about the secular vs. religious interpretations of the saint's life which might be just shortly signalized in the paper.

Line 253 - the bracketed phrase ("although some believed so") needs a reference and further information.

Lines 366-370 - the commentary to the quotation may be expanded to demonstrate in a more developped way Wittlin's own very personal relationship with St. Francis

For more technical things, there should be an information about English translation of Polish texts quoted in the paper. If it is always done by the author of the paper, it suffices to give this information once, after the very first quotation.

In line 140, the comma should be put after "Lviv".

Lines 263-265 need to be italicized, I suppose.

Line 584 - Cimabue (instead of Ciamabue).

Author Response

Thank you very much for reading of my paper. All of the Reviewer's 1 comments have been taken into account where possible. For example, it was not possible to present the earlier influences of the Franciscan tradition on Polish culture (up to the 18th century), because there were no such influences.

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The article is solidly researched, well-written (some minor points have been pointed out at the end of thses comments). The structure is coherent, and the most important points are addressed in detail. The overall conclusion is positive: in my opinion this article deserves to be published. However, I have some questions, which the author (or authors) may care to address:

1. Section 1 "The historical background of Franciscanism in Poland – from the Middle Ages to Young Poland" provides a much-needed overview of the reception of the Franciscan theme in Poland (and Polish literature in particular). What seems to be missing is a brief examination of the further life of this theme in the post-World War Two era in Poland. Was Brandstaetter unique in choosing the Franciscan theme, or did other writers do so as well? Also, how did the political climate in postwar Poland, which as we know was not conducive to this kind of theme, factor into this picture? This would provide a context for the reception of the work of Brandstaetter, published after 1945.

2. The author relevantly stresses the need to relate the historical Franciscan theme in Polish literature to the image of Francis as it is experienced in the present-day world. What seems to be missing, however, in the author's exploration of Wittlin's and Branstaetter's Franciscanism is the ecological dimension. The author might consider expanding the analysis to include a reflection on this aspect. Is it present in Wittlin's and Brandstaetter's readings, and if so, in what ways? If not, why is this theme less prominent than one would expect from a present-day viewpoint? For instance, could the author share his or her views on whether a Franciscan reading of Wittlin's Salt of the Earth reveals an ecological awareness consistent with present-day ideas on Francis? 

While the reception of Wittlin's work by critics in the interwar and postwar period is well-covered, a small lacuna exists when we try to find corresponding information for Brandstaetter. What was the impact of his reworking of the Franciscan theme in communist-controlled Poland? How did the Catholic intelligentsia respond? Is there evidence of the Church embracing Brandstaetter's indeed unique adaptations? All these are questions that can be usefully addressed, filling in some necessary details in an otherwise factually rich account. 

Minor issues:  

p. 3

Typographical error in the title: "Les poètes franciscanis" (should be franciscains).

Some names should be transcribed in the original languages: "Henryk Thode" is Henry (or Heinrich) Thode.

"Staffowie" is the plural form of the surname "Staff" in Polish, but in English the singular should be used: "the brothers Leopold and Ludwik Staff" (144).

The sentence "At that time, Lviv the literary milieu lived in close cooperation with university circles" (140) should be rewritten for coherence.

The sentence "The widespread interest in Poverello was also influenced by Fiorettii’s translations" (149) should also be rewritten: "by the translations of the Fiorettii (the title should be italicized). 

The quotation on p. 6 (260-265) should be italicized in full.

The translation of the notebook entry "‘You decide: either you are a Christian or a person who worries that you have to fail in life" (354-355, p. 7) seems to obscure the sense of Wittlin's comment. It should be compared to the original (e.g. wouldn't it be better to replace "have" by may/might?).

Author Response

Thank you very much for reading of my paper. All of Reviewer 2's comments have been taken into account, if possible. It was impossible to write more broadly about the Franciscan trend in Polish literature after World War II, because the trend clearly did not exist. Yes, there were a few works (which I briefly mentioned in the article), but they do not create a clear trend. We cannot talk about the ecological dimension of Wittlin's and Brandstaetter's work, because they did not take up such topics in their work.