Władysław Reymont’s Narrative of the 1905 Revolution ("From the Constitutional Days")

Abstract

One of the most significant issues that captured the attention of Władysław Stanisław Reymont was the question of revolution, particularly the 1905 Revolution, to which he devoted several works compiled in the volume Na krawędzi (1907). This collection consists of various short narrative forms, diverse in genre and style, including
the titular Na krawędzi, Z konstytucyjnych dni, Cmentarzysko, Zabiłem!, Czekam…,
Franek, and Przed świtem. These stories create an intriguing constellation of interrelated works. Reymont’s attitude toward the events of the 1905 Revolution, which he experienced firsthand in Warsaw, was not straightforward. Z konstytucyjnych
dni offers a vivid and immediate account of events unfolding in Warsaw during the autumn of 1905, following the announcement of the constitutional manifesto by the Tsar. The writer masterfully recreates the tense atmosphere of those days, highlighting their complex and ambiguous nature. The other works included in Na krawędzi take on a parabolic and fairy-tale character, which Reymont later continues in Księżniczka and Bunt. Baśń came from the post-war period. Ultimately, Reymont’s view of the revolution is negative. He perceives it as a threat to social order, freedom, and the independent existence of Poland, with broader implications for civilization and humanity. In his view, salvation lies in a return to fundamental Christian values.