Stańczyk
Stańczyk | |
|---|---|
 StańczykbyJan Matejko Thejesteris depicted as the only person at a royal ball who is troubled by the news that theMuscoviteshavecaptured Smolensk.This event happened in 1514. | |
| Born | c. 1480 |
| Died | c. 1560 |
| Nationality | Polish |
| Other names | Gąska |
| Occupation | Jester |
Stańczyk(c. 1480–1560) (Polish pronunciation:[ˈstajnt͡ʂɨk]) was the most famous Polishcourt jester.He was employed by threePolishkings:Alexander,Sigismund the OldandSigismund Augustus.[1][2]
Name, identity and historicity
[edit]Scarcity of sources gave rise to four distinct hypotheses in the 19th century: that he was entirely invented byJan Kochanowskiand his colleagues; or that he was "perhaps a typical jester dressed by his contemporaries in anAesopianattire; or perhaps aShakespeareanvision of 19th century writers; or perhaps indeed agrey eminenceof thesocietatis ioculatorum".[2]In any measure, common consensus among modern scholars is that such a person indeed existed and even if he did not, he had a tremendous importance toPolish cultureof later centuries, appearing in works of many artists of the 19th and 20th centuries.[2]
Almost nothing is known about Stańczyk's life and even his name and identity are a matter of dispute. Contemporary sources mention court jesters named Gąska and Stańczyk. Notably, both names are featured in two short poems by Jan Kochanowski.[3]Both words arediminutives,of the wordsgęś(goose) andStanisław,respectively, rather than proper names in their own right.[3]All of the above ledAleksander Brücknerand later scholars to believe that Gąska and Stańczyk are merely two nicknames of the same person.[2][4]Because of that hypothesis Stańczyk is sometimes referred to asStanisław Gąska,a name that resembles a typicalPolish name,except it is of much later provenance and was coined in late 19th century rather than during the jester's times.[5]
By any measure Stańczyk's fame and legend were already strong during his own time, theRenaissance.The popularity later reappeared in 19th century and remained well known to present times.[4]Unlike jesters of other European courts, Stańczyk has been always considered to have been much more than a mere entertainer.[6]
He is remembered as a man of great intelligence and a political philosopher gifted with formidable insight into Poland's current and future situation. He used his job to criticize and warn his contemporaries by the use ofsatire.His witty jokes often pertained to current political orcourtmatters. Stańczyk's remarks and jokes were preserved by numerous contemporary writers and historians, includingŁukasz Górnicki,Jan Kochanowski,Marcin Kromer,andMikołaj Rejwho praised him for fighting hypocrisy in the name of truth. Some sources even go as far as to call him a "personal friend to Marcin Kromer, to the dislike of the bishops".[7]
The best known anecdote about Stańczyk is that of a hunting incident. In 1533 King Sigismund the Old had a huge bear brought for him fromLithuania.The bear was released in the forest ofNiepołomicenearKrakówso that the king could hunt it. During the hunt, the animal charged at the king, the queen and their courtiers which caused panic and mayhem. QueenBonafell from her horse which resulted in her miscarriage. Later, the king criticized Stańczyk for having run away instead of attacking the bear. The jester is said to have replied that "it is a greater folly to let out a bear that was already in a cage". This remark is often interpreted as an allusion to the king's policy towardPrussiawhich was defeated by Poland but not fully incorporated into the Crown.
Stańczyk as a symbol
[edit]
Stańczyk became a popular historical figure inPolish literatureafter thepartitions(1795). Some writers treated him as a symbol of Poland's struggle for independence, others provided him with ratherShakespeareantraits. He appears in a work of, among others,Julian Ursyn Niemcewicz(inJan z Tęczna. Powieść historyczna,1825)[8]and several works byJózef Ignacy Kraszewski(1839, 1841).[9]
Teka Stańczyka
[edit]
In 1869 a group of young conservative publicists:Józef Szujski,Stanisław Tarnowski,Stanisław KoźmianandLudwik Wodzicki,published a series of satirical pamphlets entitledTeka Stańczyka(Stańczyk's PortfolioorStańczyk's Files). Only five years after the tragic end of theJanuary Uprising,the pamphlets ridiculed the idea of armednational uprisingsand suggested a compromise with Poland's enemies, especially theAustrian Empire,and more concentration on economic growth than on political independence. The political faction which adopted these ideas became known as "Stańczycy" (plural of "Stańczyk" ).
Stańczyk in the arts
[edit]Stańczyk was also one ofJan Matejko's favorite historical figures and he appears in a number of his paintings, such as in thePrussian Homage.Matejko, giving the jester his own facial features, created the popular image of Stańczyk that is familiar to most modern Poles. The painter always depicted Stańczyk with a very concerned and reflective look on his face, in stark contrast to hiscap and bellsand other jester's gear. Matejko's vision of Stańczyk influenced the way other artists, such asLeon Wyczółkowski,later depicted the jester.
The most notable appearance of Stańczyk in literature is inStanisław Wyspiański's playWesele(The Wedding)where the jester's ghost visits the Journalist, a character modeled afterRudolf Starzewski,editor of the Kraków-based paperCzas(Time), associated with the Stańczycy faction. In the play, Stańczyk accuses the Journalist, who calls the jester a "great man", of inactivity and passive acceptance of the nation's fate. At the end of their conversation, Stańczyk gives the Journalist his "caduceus"(the jester'smarotte) and tells him to "stir the nation" but not to "tarnish the sacred things, for sacred they must remain". Thus Wyspiański reinforced Stańczyk's role as a symbol of patriotism and skeptical political wisdom.
Stańczyk is also prominently featured in a 1908 painting entitledRealityby the PolishSymbolistpainterJacek Malczewski.[10]
References
[edit]- ^Józef Bachórz; Alina Kowalczykowa (1991).Słownik literatury polskiej XIX wieku(in Polish). Wrocław:Ossolineum.p. 109.ISBN978-83-04-03251-4.
- ^abcdJanusz Pelc; Paulina Buchwald-Pelcowa; Barbara Otwinowska (1989).Jan Kochanowski 1584–1984: epoka, twórczość, recepcja(in Polish). Lublin: Wydawnictwo Lubelskie. pp. 425–438.ISBN978-83-222-0473-3.
- ^abStanisław Eile(1960). "Stańczyk".Pamiętnik literacki(in Polish).2.Wrocław:Zakład im. Ossolińskich:260–263.
- ^abJan Zygmunt Jakubowski, ed. (1959).Przegląd humanistyczny(in Polish).3.Warsaw:Państwowe Wydawnictwo Naukowe:200.
{{cite journal}}:Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^The etymologic analysis of Stańczyk's name is provided in:Warsaw University, Institute of Polish Language (corporate author) (1992).Prace filologiczne(in Polish). Warsaw: Skł. gł. w Księgarni E. Wendego. pp. 283–290.
{{cite book}}:|author=has generic name (help) - ^The difference between Polish and foreign traditions in this context is discussed in:Hilary Meciszewski (1 May 1844). "Humorystyka".Dwutygodnik Literacki(in Polish) (3). Kraków: 68–74.
- ^Helena Kapełuś, ed. (1964).Stanisław z Bochnie, kleryka królewski(in Polish). Wrocław: Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich.
- ^Julian Krzyżanowski (1958). "Stańczyk w Janie z Tęczyna Niemcewicza".W wieku Reja i Stańczyka: szkice z dziejów Odrodzenia w Polsce.Państwowe Wydawn. Naukowe. p. 371.Retrieved21 April2013.
- ^Andrzej Stoff (2006)."Zagłoba sum!": studium postaci literackiej.Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Mikołaja Kopernika. p. 111.ISBN978-83-231-1996-8.Retrieved21 April2013.
- ^Agata Szkup."Rzeczywistość Jacka Malczewskiego".desa.pl(in Polish).Retrieved7 January2024.
Further reading
[edit]- Obraz głupca i szaleńca w kulturach słowiańskich[The Image of a Fool and a Madman in Slavic Cultures] (in Polish). Warsaw:Warsaw University.1996. p. 179.
- Julian Krzyżanowski (1958). "Błazen starego króla. Stańczyk w dziejach kultury polskiej".W wieku Reja i Stańczyka: szkice z dziejów Odrodzenia w Polsce.Państwowe Wydawn. Naukowe. pp. 328–406.Retrieved21 April2013.
External links
[edit]
- (in Polish)Stańczyk,WIEM Encyklopedia
- (in Polish)Andrzej Solarz,Stańczyk,Internetowy Kurier Proszowicki - SERWIS Ziemi Proszowickiej
- (in Polish)Liliana Sonik,"Stańczyk na dworze królowej Bony wobec straconego Smoleńska",Dziennik Polski, 26 April 2010
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