Political Taking Over of Tradition and Modernity Reflected in Books for Children and Youth in Post-War Poland (1945–1960)

Abstract

This article is aimed at an analysis of a review of discourses of tradition and modernity in literature for children and youth in the situation of political entanglement in the communist system in post-war Poland (1945–1960). The analysis is based on a review of widely represented research described in texts focusing on history and literary criticism, in particular by scholars, who are concentrated on socialist realism – the period that was most painful to the Polish children’s literature and education. Three unique and clearly distinct sub-periods identified during this time are used to describe the political tackling of tradition and modernity in books for children and youth in the period and sub-periods in question. These are: “hard beginnings” (1944–1949), “centrally-controlled books” (1950–1955), and “following the Thaw” (1956–1960). Simultaneously with this issue, a self-telling example of the convoluted fate of one of the best- known protagonists of Polish classical book for the youngest children, an icon – Matołek the Billy Goat – is depicted.