Jerzy Broszkiewicz Explained

Birth Date:6 June 1922
Birth Place:Lviv
Death Place:Kraków
Nationality:Polish
Known For:novels, dramas, science fiction
Notable Works:Wielka, większa i największa
Ci z Dziesiątego Tysiąca
Awards:Order of Polonia Restituta
Warsaw Uprising Cross
Medal of the 40th Anniversary of People's Poland
Order of the Smile

Jerzy Broszkiewicz (June 6, 1922 – October 4, 1993)[1] was a Polish prose writer, playwright, essayist and publicist. He is best known for his dramas as well as young adult literature; the latter usually took forms of historical or science fiction novels.[2]

Biography

He was born on 6 June 1922 in Lviv; his father, Adam, was an officer in the Polish Armed Forces.[3] From 1934, he was a student at the in Lviv. In 1940, after finishing secondary school and music school, he entered the Lviv National Music Academy. During the German occupation of Lviv (from 1941 to 1944), he participated in underground cultural activities (literary evenings, concerts); he was also a louse-feeder at the Lviv Institute for Typhus and Virus Research under Professor Rudolf Weigl.[4] [5]

In 1944, he married Ewa Łomnicka and moved to Kraków, where he lived in the famous at 22 Krupnicza Street. For some time, he studied at the Academy of Music but discontinued his studies in 1945 (although and described him as a “promising pianist”).[6] From that year, he was a member of the Polish Writers' Union (from 1957 to 1958, he was vice-president of the main board; from 1973, he was a member of the Kraków branch board of the union, and in 1975, its vice-president). From 1945 to 1947, he collaborated with the editorial office of the weekly (including as a proofreader and theater critic) and the journal . He also worked with the newspapers and Dziennik Polski (from 1945 to 1946).[7] From 1947 to 1949, he co-edited the magazine , and later, from 1948 to 1951, he was an editor for the monthly .

In 1948, he moved to Warsaw. From 1950 to 1951, he hosted a weekly cultural program on the radio and later was a writer for radio plays. From 1950 to 1963, he published in and (where he was a member of the editorial board from 1953). From 1953 to 1954, he edited the artistic-literary supplement in Sztandar Młodych called Przedpole. In 1953, he joined the Polish United Workers' Party,[8] and in the same year, he became a member of the editorial board of Przegląd Kulturalny, where he was a co-editor until 1963. From 1955 to 1956, he was the artistic director of the Estrada Theatre. In 1959, he returned to Kraków; from that year until 1971, he was the literary manager of the Ludowy Theatre in Nowa Huta. In 1960, he wrote for Gazeta Krakówska. In 1975, he became a member of the Kraków Polish United Workers' Party Committee and a member of the presidium of the Kraków club Kużnica.

Private life

His wife, Ewa (née Łomnicka), was a doctor in psychiatry and the daughter of the renowned mathematician Antoni Łomnicki. They had one daughter, Irena (1954–2021), the prototype for Iki from the novel Wielka, większa i największa (The Great, Greater, and Greatest), a doctor of mathematics and artist from Piwnica pod Baranami.He suffered from schizophrenia. He died on 4 October 1993 in Kraków. He was buried in the Alley of Merit at the Rakowicki Cemetery (section LXIX, row B-2-2).[9]

Career

His literary work was diverse. He made his debut in 1945 as a music critic[10] and simultaneously as a writer with the short story Monika, published in the weekly Odrodzenie (No. 18). His book debut was the novel Oczekiwanie (Expectation), set in the ghetto, for which he received the Kraków Land Award.

Another significant work was the repeatedly reissued novel Kształt miłości (The Shape of Love) about Frédéric Chopin, for which he received the State Award of the 2nd degree in 1951. In 1971, the novel Długo i szczęśliwie (Happily Ever After) won the Association of Trade Unions Award. (Dumpling, Kefir, and the Local) was distinguished at the IV Premio Europeo in 1968.

He authored 14 novels for young readers, debuting with Opowieść olimpijska (Olympic Tale) in 1948, although most of his novels for younger audiences were written in the 1960s and 1970s. His earlier works in this genre were often biographical. Many of his later works belong to the science fiction genre, which Frycie considered the most significant part of his oeuvre. Notably, Wielka, większa i największa (The Great, Greater, and Greatest) from 1960 received high praise from critics[11] and became a compulsory reading book for fifth grade.[12] [13] According to Frycie, in his works for young adults, Broszkiewicz exposed moral values such as resourcefulness, wisdom, nobility, and courage, and combined various narrative techniques, genres, and literary conventions.

In addition to this, he also wrote well-received dramas, being a multiple winner of drama competitions. He penned over 20 theatrical, television, and radio plays. He also wrote collections of essays, television[14] and film scripts (e.g., Kopernik [''Copernicus'']), and publications on music. Some of his plays were produced abroad, including in France, Germany, Switzerland, Mexico, New Zealand, and the US. Broszkiewicz's works have been translated into at least 20 languages, and the total print run of his novels exceeded 1 million copies.

Frycie described Broszkiewicz as an exceptionally talented and versatile writer.

Broszkiewicz also helped in writing the debut novels of Sat-Okh: Ziemia słonych skał (Land of Salty Rocks, 1958) and Biały mustang (White Mustang, 1959). According to, Broszkiewicz was even their actual undisclosed author based on Sat-Okh's stories.[15]

Young adult novels

Other novels

Dramas

Publications

Private life

He lived in the Krowodrza district of Kraków. He was married to Dr. Ewa (1920–2000), daughter of Antoni Łomnicki, who was a psychiatrist.[16] They had a daughter, Irena Broszkiewicz (1954–2021), a mathematician associated with, the director of Piwnica pod Baranami.

Orders and decorations

Awards

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Oramus . Marek . Marek Oramus . 1993 . Jerzy Broszkiewicz . . pl . 12 . 135 . 75 . 0867-132X.
  2. Web site: 2003 . Jadwiga Czachowska . Alicja Szałagan (red.) . Współcześni polscy pisarze i badacze literatury. Słownik biobibliograficzny. T. 1, A – B . Contemporary Polish Writers and Literary Scholars: A Biobibliographical Dictionary. Vol. 1, A – B . 2023-10-12 . 289 . pl.
  3. Book: Brzeska-Smerek, Teresa . Słownik literatury dziecięcej i młodzieżowej . 2002 . Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolinskich . 978-83-04-04606-1 . Baluch . Alicja . 50–51 . pl . Dictionary of Children's and Young Adult Literature . Broszkiewicz, Jerzy . Leszczyński . Grzegorz . Tylicka . Barbara.
  4. Web site: Alphabetical list of 507 persons employed in Prof. Rudolf Stefan Weigl Institute (1939 – 1944) and professions of some of them after WWII . 2024-09-08 . www.lwow.com.pl . en, pl.
  5. Web site: Jerzy Broszkiewicz Życie i twórczość Artysta . Jerzy Broszkiewicz Life and Work Artist . 2024-09-09 . Culture.pl . pl.
  6. Book: Frycie, Stanisław . Leksykon literatury dla dzieci i młodzieży . 2007 . Naukowe Wydawnictwo Piotrkowskie . 978-83-89935-24-3 . 85–88 . pl . Lexicon of Children's and Young Adult Literature.
  7. Book: Chmielewska, Małgorzata . Leksykon polskich pisarzy muzycznych XX wieku . 2008 . Wydawnictwo Polskie . 978-83-922684-2-0 . Wołomin . pl . Lexicon of 20th-Century Polish Music Writers . Broszkiewicz Jerzy Stefan.
  8. Book: Kto jest kim w Polsce 1984: informator biograficzny . 1984 . Interpress . 978-83-223-2073-0 . Becela . Lidia . 1 . Warsaw . pl . Who’s Who in Poland 1984: Biographical Directory.
  9. Web site: Lokalizator Grobów - Zarząd Cmentarzy Komunalnych . Grave Locator - Municipal Cemetery Management . 2024-09-08 . zck-krakow.pl . pl.
  10. Book: Frycie, Stanisław . Nowy słownik literatury dla dzieci i młodzieży: pisarze, książki, serie, ilustratorzy, przegląd bibliograficzny . 1979 . Wiedza Powszechna . 978-83-214-0018-1 . Kuliczkowska . Krystyna . 52–53 . pl . New Dictionary of Children's and Young Adult Literature: Writers, Books, Series, Illustrators, Bibliographic Review . Broszkiewicz, Jerzy . Tylicka . Barbara.
  11. Kuliczkowska . Krystyna . 1967 . W świecie fantazji, marzeń i iluzji . In the World of Fantasy, Dreams, and Illusions . Miesięcznik Literacki . pl . 12.
  12. Book: Leszczyński, Grzegorz . Słownik literatury dziecięcej i młodzieżowej . 2002 . Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolinskich . 978-83-04-04606-1 . Baluch . Alicja . 412–413 . pl . Dictionary of Children's and Young Adult Literature . Wielka, większa i największa . The Great, Greater, and the Greatest . Leszczyński . Grzegorz . Tylicka . Barbara.
  13. Book: Jędrych, Karolina . Lektury w programach dla szkoły podstawowej z lat 1949–1989 . Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Śląskiego . 2014 . 978-83-226-2209-4 . Katowice . 217 . pl . Reading Lists in Primary School Programs from 1949–1989.
  14. Web site: Jerzy Broszkiewicz . 2024-09-08 . FilmPolski . pl.
  15. Web site: Podsiadło . Jacek . 27 August 2024 . Polski Indianin Sat-Okh. Nie ma drugiej takiej ściemy . The Polish Native American Sat-Okh. There’s No Other Hoax Like It . 2024-09-08 . wyborcza.pl . pl.
  16. Web site: Dr hab. Ewa Broszkiewicz . 2024-09-09 . nauka-polska.pl . pl.
  17. Web site: M.P. z 1955 r. nr 91, poz. 1144 . Journal of Laws of 1955, No. 91, item 1144 . 2024-09-09 . isap.sejm.gov.pl . pl.
  18. Web site: Jerzy Broszkiewicz . 2024-09-09 . nekrologi.wyborcza.pl . pl.
  19. 19 July 1984 . Uznanie dla twórców kultury . Recognition for Cultural Creators . Trybuna Robotnicza . pl . 170 . 1–2.
  20. Web site: 19 January 1955 . M.P. z 1955 r. nr 101, poz. 1400 . Official Journal of the Polish People's Republic from 1955, No. 101, Item 1400 . 2024-09-09 . isap.sejm.gov.pl . pl.
  21. Web site: Broszkiewicz Jerzy . 2024-09-09 . www.orderusmiechu.pl . pl-PL.

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