The Image of Vilnius and the East in Wiesław Szymański's "Journey to the East"

Abstract

An analysis of Wiesław Szymański’s poetry collection Podróż na Wschód (Journey to the East, 1996) reveals the image of Vilnius and the East in the poet’s work. Following his journey through Lithuania and Russia, Szymański presents the East as a space of historical tragedies—particularly those connected with Poland and the Polish people—of oblivion, and of painful reflection. The successive stages of the journey uncover the burden of the past: shadows, memories, and the ghosts of history. Journey to the East is thus not only a record of travel but also a profound meditation on memory, identity, and the fate of the Borderlands.