Saturday, June 30, 2012
Powojenni polscy prestidigitatorzy Korczaka - Korczak in the ‘Distorted Mirror’
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| Korczak zawsze w "Krzywym zwierciadle" - albo deformowany albo powiększany albo zmniejszany albo znika przy pomocy innych luster! |
Korczak i Podział efektów iluzjonistycznych
- Lata 1945-1953 - pojawianie się - wyciągnięcie królika z pustego kapelusza, itp.
- Lata 1953-1956 i 1966-1969 - znikanie - znikanie przedmiotów lub osoby zamkniętej w skrzynie, po jej zasłonięciu, itp.
- Lata 1971-1972 przemiana - np. chusteczki w gołębia
- Lata 1973-2012 - przywracanie (scalanie) - - łączenie w całość podartych przedmiotów (kart, itp.)
O tych "sztuczkach", na stronie Muzeum Historycznego w Warszawie i Korczakianum jest nastepujacy opis tych "wypadków":
Tuż po zakończeniu II wojny światowej zainicjowane zostało - by utrwalić pamięć o Korczaku i jego dokonaniach - gromadzenie ocalałych materiałów i pamiątek. Powstał Komitet Uczczenia Pamięci Janusza Korczaka (1946-48), utworzony przez ludzi, którzy osobiście i blisko znali Starego Doktora. Jednak dopiero po stalinowskiej przerwie, na „odwilżowej” fali 1956 roku, odrodzony wówczas Komitet Korczakowski powołał stałą Komisję Archiwalną (1957) i ta na szerszą skalę rozpoczęła zbieranie dokumentów, publikacji, wspomnień, fotografii, a nawet podjęła pierwsze prace bibliograficzne.
Losy zbiorów nadal nie były wolne od politycznych uwarunkowań, stąd kolejna „zapaść” - w latach 1968-69, gdy część aktywnych działaczy zdecydowała się na wymuszoną emigrację, a zbiory usunięto z pomieszczeń Towarzystwa Przyjaciół Dzieci, przy którym afiliowany był Komitet Korczakowski.
To jednak nie iluzjoniści, mentaliści czy prestidigitatorzy przyczynili sie do tych wszystkich zjawisk!
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Zapaście i Scalanie Korczaka A tak naprawdę to były dwie! Zapaść to taka nazwa używana przez Stowarzyszenie Korczakowskie w opisie historycznym tego co było. Trochę się ta nazwa fenomenu zgadza z opisem w Wiki: Wstrząs – nagły kliniczny stan zagrożenia życia, w którym na skutek dysproporcji między zapotrzebowaniem a dostarczeniem ... Zapaść I - Lewino-Stalinowska 1953-1956 Po napisaniu przez Aleksandra Lewina pracy pt. Problemy wychowania kolektywnego: refleksje pedagogiczne na tle doświadczeń polskiego domu dziecka i szkoły na Uralu - Warszawa. Państ. Zakł. Wydaw. Szkolnych (PZWS), 1953. - 324 s.  1945-1952 Wiadomo, Polsce Komitet Korczakowski funkcjonował i rozrastał się aż do 1952 roku. Wtedy to, nagle, w okresie najgorszego stalinizmu poglądy i idee głoszone przez Janusza Korczaka stały się nagle nieaktualne! Makarenko nie powinien mieć konkurencji! Jak to się stało?! 1953-1956 Były bursista Korczaka (1938-1939 r) Aleksander Lewin napisał rozprawę: Problemy wychowania kolektywnego: refleksje pedagogiczne na tle doświadczeń polskiego domu dziecka i szkoły na Uralu / Aleksander Lewin. Pierwsze wydanie 1953, drugie wydanie 1955 r. Rozprawa gloryfikowała Makarenkę i obrzucała błotem pedagogikę Korczaka. Wtedy dzieła i książki Korczaka zostały usunięte z księgarni i bibliotek, nawet bibliotek szkolnych a te nowowydrukowane poszły na przemiał. Aleksander Lewin 1955 został odznaczony Krzyżem Oficerskim Orderu Odrodzenia Polski właśnie za tą swoją rozprawę o Makarence i za doświadczenie pedagogiczne. Wisława Szymborska zapytana o swoja twórczość w okresie stalinowskim odpowiedziała szczerze: Trudno, tak wtedy pisałam, koniec! Lewin do końca nie powiedział otwarcie: Mea culpa! 1968-1969 Zapaść II - Antysemicka Po zapaści I, dopiero na "odwilżowej” fali 1956 r. został odrodzony na nowo Komitet Korczakowski. Wtedy powołał stałą Komisję Archiwalną (1957 r.) i ta na szerszą skalę rozpoczęła zbieranie dokumentów, publikacji, wspomnień, fotografii, a nawet podjęła pierwsze prace bibliograficzne. W Polsce, w 1962 uroczyscie obchodzono Rok Korczakowski z okazji dwudziestej rocznicy jego śmierci. W czasie trwania obchodów tego roku została zorganizowana miedzy innymi korczakowska sesja pedagogiczna i Akademia w Teatrze Kameralnym. W prasie i mediach zawrzało od informacji o działalności życiu i dziełach Korczaka. Wydano również z tej okazji serię kolorowych znaczków pocztowych z motywami z Króla Maciusia I. Ta kolejna "zapaść”, antysemicka, w latach 1968 – 1969, to m.in. zamknięcie i opieczętowanie lokalu Komitetu Korczakowskiego przy ul. Jasnej. Ostatni przewodniczący Komitetu, Michał Wróblewski jest szykanowany przez władze polskie i w listopadzie 1969 roku, podobnie jak wielu innych korczakowców opuszcza Polskę Towarzystwa Przyjaciół Dzieci, przy którym afiliowany był Komitet Korczakowski. Szykany Oczywiście szykany wobec zarządu Komitetu Korczakowskiego było również związane z zerwaniem stosunków dyplomatycznych Miedzy Izraelem a Polską nastąpiło 12 czerwca 1967 roku w następstwie wojny sześciodniowej. Polska w twn sposób solidaryzowala się z państwami arabskimi zgodnie z linią polityczną ZSRR i większości innych państw Układu Warszawskiego. Odnowienie pełnych stosunków dyplomatycznch nastąpiło dopiero w lutym 1990 roku. "Tu zaszła zmiana" używając tytułu opowiadania M. Dąbrowskiej, tak można określic resztę lat 60-tych w działalności komitetu korczakowskiego którego agonia była równoległa z Rządowa fala antysemityzmu w czasie której wielu działaczy komitetu korczakowskiego opuściło Polskę (PRL). Archiwa korczakowskie usunięto wtedy z lokali TPD. Nalegano na mojego ojca, Pana Miszę (Michała Wróblewskiego) by jako przewodniczący zwołał ogólne zebranie Komitetu Korczakowskiego i zrzekł się pod jakimkolwiek pozorem swego stanowiska (zupełnie jak w okresie stalinowskim, tyle tylko że nie wysyłano na Syberię). Ojciec odmówił zdecydowanie. Kazik Dębnicki* – też członek zarządu – oświadczył, że gdyby Ojciec zwołał takie zebranie, które ma przekształcić Komitet w Stowarzyszenie „juden frei” on przynajmniej w tym udziału nie weźmie! Ojciec się nie poddał a Komitet i tak zamknęli! Igor Newerly i Aleksander Lewin ucichli wtedy zupełnie! Basia Abramow i Ida Merzan pozostały wierne i Korczakowi i "Panu Miszy". Reaktywowanie działalności po zapaści było wymuszone przez zagranicznych korczakowców w Paryżu na spotkaniu w UNESCO. Polska wyznaczyła (!) wtedy nowy zarząd. W skład weszła m.in. dr. Jadwiga Bińczycka, pracownik Wydziału Pedagogiki i Psychologii Uniwersytetu Śląskiego, w Katowicach. Ten wybór a właściwie dobór to trzecie odrodzenie ruchu korczakowskiego w powojennej Polsce. *Kazimierz Dębnicki (1919 - 1986), współpracownik „Małego Przeglądu”; dziennikarz, pisarz; działacz ruchu korczakowskiego. After WWII 1945–1952 Shortly after the end of World War II, in order to preserve the memory of Korczak and his achievements, the collection of surviving materials and memorabilia was initiated. The Committee for the Commemoration of Janusz Korczak (1946-48) was established by people who knew the Old Doctor personally and closely. However, it was only after the Stalinist break, on the wave of the ‘thaw’ of 1956, that the then revived Korczak Committee established a permanent Archival Commission (1957), which began collecting documents, publications, memoirs, and photographs on a larger scale, and even undertook its first bibliographic work. So, the Korczak Committee in Poland functioned and expanded until 1952. Then, suddenly, during the worst period of Stalinism, the views and ideas preached by Janusz Korczak suddenly became obsolete! Makarenko should have no competition! How did this happen? See Collapse I. The fate of the collections was still not free from political constraints, hence another ‘collapse’ in 1968-69, when some of the active activists decided to emigrate under duress, and the collections were removed from the premises of the Society of Friends of Children, with which the Korczak Committee was affiliated, see Collapse II. 1953-1956 Collapse I - Anti-Semitic - Lewin/Stalin/Makarenko Action Aleksander Lewin, a former Korczak scholarship holder (in 1038-1939), wrote a dissertation entitled: Problems of collective upbringing: pedagogical reflections based on the experiences of a Polish children's home and school in the Urals. The first edition appeared in 1953, the second edition in 1955. The dissertation glorified Makarenko and denigrated Korczak's pedagogy. After that, Korczak's works and books were removed from bookshops and libraries, even school libraries, and those that had been recently reprinted were sent to be pulped. In 1955, Aleksander Lewin was awarded the Officer's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta for his dissertation on Makarenko and for his pedagogical experience. When asked about her work during the Stalinist period, Wisława Szymborska replied honestly: It's difficult, that's how I wrote then, end of story! Aleksander Lewin never openly said: Mea culpa! 1968-1969 Collapse II - Anti-Semitic - Gomulka/Jaruzelski Action After the first collapse, it was only during the ‘thaw’ of 1956 that the Korczak Committee was revived. At that time, it established a permanent Archival Commission (1957), which began collecting documents, publications, memoirs, and photographs on a larger scale, and even undertook its first bibliographic work. In Poland, 1962 was solemnly celebrated as the Korczak Year on the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of his death. During the celebrations, a Korczak pedagogical session and an Academy event were organised at the Chamber Theatre, among other activities. The press and media were abuzz with information about Korczak's life and works. A series of colourful postage stamps with motifs from King Maciuś I was also issued on this occasion. This next ‘collapse’, anti-Semitic in nature, in 1968–1969, included the closure and sealing of the Korczak Committee's premises on Jasna Street. The last chairman of the Committee, Michał Wróblewski, was harassed by the Polish authorities and, in November 1969, like many other Korczak supporters, he left Poland. The Society of Friends of Children, with which the Korczak Committee was affiliated, also left Poland. When the Korczak Committee was about to be closed by Polish authorities, Igor Newerly and Aleksander Lewin fell completely silent then! Basia Abramow (Newerly´s wife) and Ida Merzan remained loyal (as always) to both Korczak and ‘Pan Misza’. Harassment Of course, the harassment of the Korczak Committee's management was also related to the severance of diplomatic relations between Israel and Poland on 12 June 1967 following the Six-Day War. Poland thus demonstrated solidarity with the Arab states, aligning itself with the political stance of the USSR and most other Warsaw Pact countries. Full diplomatic relations were not restored until February 1990. The reactivation of activities after Collapse II - "Stowarzyszenie". The reactivation of activities after the collapse was forced by foreign Korczak societies in Paris, mainly Swedish, French, and German. Representatives from Poland were appointed to this UNESCO meeting; however, excluding Aleksander Lewin. Poland then appointed (!) an organization called "Stowarzyszenie" and also elected a new board. Its members included Dr Jadwiga Bińczycka, an employee of the Faculty of Pedagogy and Psychology at the University of Silesia in Katowice. This excellent choice marked the third revival of the Korczak movement in post-war Poland. As I wrote above, besides the harassment of the Korczak Committee's management and the closure of the Polish Korczak Committee, Poland broke diplomatic relations with Israel. Relations that were reestablished in 1990. At the Korczak meeting in Paris, under the auspices of UNESCO, Polish representatives were actually given a harsh ultimatum. It was about building the IKA - International Korczak Association in the West and about the membership of the Polish Korczak Association in it. What exactly happened afterwards, I do not exactly remember, but in Poland, one reactivated Komitet Korczakowski (Korczak Committee), now called Stowarzyszenie, and showed the will to be the headquarters of future IKA. In January 1981, Jerzy Kuberski, president of the Janusz Korczak International Association, arrived in Israel with a Polish delegation to attend a meeting of the association's presidium. Between 1980 and 1982, Kuberski also served as head of the Office for Religious Affairs. In the same year, after Kuberski opened the door, Włodzimierz Sokorski (former head of Polish radio and television), president of ZBoWiD, arrived in Israel. So in a way, Korczak was helping, 40 years after his death, to reeastablish Israel - Poland diplomatic relations. The board of the newly established Janusz Korczak International Association, based in Warsaw, included two Germans: Prof. Erich Dauzenroth and Adolf Hampel. Janusz Korczak in a Distorted Mirror by Pan Misza - Michal Wasserman Wroblewski Janusz Korczak lived and worked during the last period of the existence and development of the Polish-Jewish community. He came from a family that was part of the Jewish community, thoughtful and attached to its Polishness. He was one of the co-creators of the culture of this community. Not just this one. Not only exclusively Polish, either. We have every right to say that it was universally human. Various people, driven by various motives, try to outline the figure of this modest yet remarkable man, to give a picture of his activity, his work. As always in such cases, this inevitably connects with the history of the country in which he lived. Deprived of this anchoring in historical reality, various matters become incomprehensible to contemporaries, let alone to descendants. Some, beyond the effort of recreating facts, that is, beyond objective truth, have been tempted to assess his person, his activity as a pedagogue, a writer, involved in the affairs of the "little people," to whom he remained faithful to the end. Others emphasize the ethical values he upheld, which constituted his compass. In many cases, the people writing fail to protect themselves from an incredibly subjective assessment. Works of the type "I and Korczak" are born. This is a somewhat natural thing. One should only consider how far such an extremely subjective position we are allowed to accept and what, apart from the author's own individuality, may be the reasons for this subjectivism. More precisely, whether they are consistent with the figure, attitude, and thought of Janusz Korczak. The natural consequence of a subjective attitude may, of course, be a different interpretation of facts. What is unacceptable, however, is the deliberate blurring of the truth, the distortion of facts, the invention of some new, untrue, improbable facts. Why, for what, for what purpose? However, there are also clear manipulations that are not very legible at first glance, and are all the more harmful and dangerous. I am a supporter of factual criticism. Far from all comments... ...I am inclined to suspect some authors of works about Korczak of bad faith, personal ambitions, and bending their writing to immediate current needs. I know or have known some personally and respect or respected them. Certain misunderstandings sometimes result from a static approach to Korczak himself. Times changed, conditions changed, life crossed out a large part of dreams; could he himself remain unchanged in a changing situation?! I do not think at all that all the thoughts and concepts for solutions of the Old Doctor, born in pain, can be adopted today without reservation or adjustment. I support, as much as possible, a factual, comprehensive analysis of Korczak's legacy. (Many issues are still passed over in silence, e.g., genetic matters as he viewed them, the right to life and the right to death, some fragments of the Diary, written after all in such abnormal conditions.) I do not blame the authors of literary or dramatic works who create such a picture of Korczak, so distant from reality, that his close associates cannot recognise the person dear to them. However, one must acknowledge this undeniable right of writers: facts become for them inspiration for a creative design. Literary fiction does not invalidate a work, even if it evokes surprise or even distaste in someone. Far greater, however, [is the harm] of works and... Page 2 ..authors of works about Korczak I am inclined to suspect of bad faith, personal ambitions, bending their writing to immediate current needs. I know or have known some personally and respect or respected them. Certain misunderstandings sometimes arise from a static approach to Korczak's person. Times changed, conditions changed, life crossed out a large part of dreams; could he himself remain unchanged in a changing situation?! I do not think at all that all the thoughts and concepts for solutions of the Old Doctor, born in pain, can be adopted today without reservation or adjustment. I support, as much as possible, a factual, comprehensive analysis of Korczak's legacy. (Many issues are still passed over in silence, e.g., genetic matters as he viewed them, the right to life and the right to death, some fragments of the Diary, written after all in such abnormal conditions.) I do not blame the authors of literary or dramatic works who create such a picture of Korczak, so distant from reality, that his close associates cannot recognise the person dear to them. However, one must acknowledge this undeniable right of writers: facts become for them inspiration for a creative design. Literary fiction does not invalidate a work, even if it evokes surprise or even distaste in someone. Far greater, however, are the demands I place on the commentators of the Old Doctor's life and work. I think we have the right to demand from them full responsibility for the printed word, for their accounts and rationales, conveyed to contemporaries, to the young generation, and to descendants... Littera scripta manet... And these printed words will exist when we are gone, and people will someday rely on these words, quote them as sentences or opinions of authors who legitimise themselves as associates or employees alongside Korczak. I would also like to make others aware that even the reception, the perception of true facts can cause misunderstandings for people of the same era, let alone a different era or a different cultural area.I will give a few examples. It was written, in accordance with the truth, that Henryk Goldszmit's mother's maiden name was Gębicka. Someone already in the 1960s will say... Page 3 ...section: "Korczak was actually only half Jewish..." In Poland, I assume this mechanical division of a person in half was supposed to constitute some kind of ennoblement. A legacy from the era of crematoria? Maybe, if only! The truth is, he came from an assimilated family. How differently the phenomenon of assimilation is understood in different countries and environments. In Paris, at a Korczak symposium at the UNESCO headquarters, a French journalist approached us after listening to Igor Newerly's paper and asked: "Why does one so often hear the opinion that anti-Semitism is greater in Poland than in other countries, when such a wonderful person as Janusz Korczak went to a voluntary death together with Jewish children?" Then she moved on to the next question: "Who exactly was that Henryk Goldszmit who was mentioned? Did he work with Korczak as a doctor?" Dr. Hanna Kirchner, a well-known literary historian, already in the 1950s, actively joined the work of the Korczak Committee. It is hard to understand why her interesting essay, titled: "Korczak's place in literature," contained the following statement: "This unusual writer and thinker born of a baptized Jewish family..." And the motives?... Did the author of the work: "Alone with God, or prayers of those who do not pray" become closer to the Polish reader through baptism or adoption of another faith?... It is worth noting that the mentioned sentence was omitted from the same essay, published again in the collective work: "Janusz Korczak's life and work." The Catholic poet Father Jan Twardowski, on the other hand, put this matter beautifully and straightforwardly in a sermon delivered in the Visitation Sisters' church in Warsaw on December 29, 1971. "Janusz Korczak was not formally connected with Jesus through baptism, but how much we Christians can learn from his life and death." And now an example from another field. The London weekly "Wiadomości," published in Polish, published on November 18, 1973, an article by an otherwise noble man, Edward Poznański, titled: "I worked with Janusz Korczak." A copy of this article was sent to me by the general secretary of the association "Les Amis du Docteur Janusz Korczak," the unfortunately deceased Dr. Adam Nowomiński. From there... Page 4 
...curiosity and disbelief Adam asks me, as a long-time employee of the Orphanage on Krochmalna Street, alongside the Doctor, whether it is true, as E. Poznański insinuates, that Korczak was a supporter of corporal punishment, in other words, "skin thrashing." During my work at the Orphanage, I was never once a witness to a child being beaten by any of the adults. Korczak himself specifies his position on this matter as follows: "I am an uncompromising, relentless opponent of corporal punishment... He who strikes a child is an executioner..." /Selected Works, vol. 2, p. 239, W-wa 1973/ Perhaps it is even worth mentioning Marek Jaworski's booklet: "Janusz Korczak". A cleverly made compilation, instantly published in Poland by Interpress in several languages - upon the news that Korczak had "resurrected" in Paris. The author describes, among other things, how on Christmas Eve, Jewish children in the ghetto were delivered Christmas gifts and... a green Christmas tree smelling of the forest by a truck carrying garbage. It is not impossible that people of good will, as an expression of Christian brotherly love, not only came up with this idea, but also realized it. I exclude, however, the possibility that the Doctor, moved, wrote on a piece of paper: "The Jewish nation will never forget this act full of humanism and solidarity, it will never forget its Polish brothers." He was not used to reaching for high C and speaking on behalf of the nation. I knew and liked Kezik Dębnicki for many years. That is why reading his latest book: "Korczak from Up Close" filled me with astonishment and left bitterness. It is awkward and unpleasant to talk about it now. But we must. Without holding back on fabrications, the author recounts that "Catholic Christmas was celebrated in the Orphanage, with fun around a richly lit Christmas tree." /p... Page 5 
Supposedly tolerance /?/, fusion of cultures! I worked at the Orphanage for so many years, not once did I see a Christmas tree there. Dębnicki, on the other hand, drew this information from Jaworski, propagates it further, now including it in the tradition of the Orphanage. That is how the printed word works! Note! If these 10 author's sheets had been written in the literary convention of Korczak's "When I Am Little Again," one could apply such a preferential rate as to all fantasizing literati. But the author suggests facts and supposedly "first-hand." All the more harmful a pill. Impossible to swallow. Despite their goodwill towards Kazik, even his friends do not hide the distaste the book arouses. In the pages of "Polityka," K. Koźniewski writes: "The fragments of conversations between Korczak and the young Dębnicki quoted after more than half a century sound barely credible." /Polityka No. 38 of 21. 9.85/. Or a pointed note from Leon Harari, Kazik's colleague from the days of Mały Przegląd: "So after so many years of silence, a sudden enlightenment! To recreate for posterity conversations that never happened..." Unfortunately, that is how it looks. I would prefer to keep a different image of Kazik in my memory as an honest, solid person, not a mythomaniac. What a pity that just before his untimely death he committed this book. I do not know what compelled him to do this. Did he want to build a monument for himself during his lifetime, presenting himself without any basis as the confidant of the Old Doctor and an emissary of underground Fighting Poland? I wonder why, despite the obvious falsehoods that undermine the entire "Korczak from Up Close," none of the people who worked at the Orphanage publicly protested against the glaring untruths during Dębnicki's lifetime. Iuła Merżan knew Krochmalna Street from the 1920s, Lucyna Gold was in the Orphanage's boarding house, and then worked there as an educator. Aleksander Lewin was also in the boarding house in the years 1937-39 and made himself known then as a solid worker, a capable director, and otherwise a brave young student of pedagogy. Tempora mutantur... K. Dębnicki's book: "Korczak from Up Close" was met with almost the same silence as when no public statement was made after the appearance in 1953. Page 6 
...A. Lewin's books: "Problems of Collective Education". The then young author, fascinated by Makarenko, wrote about Janusz Korczak as follows (I quote): "Korczak's system created the illusion of an supposedly existing separate world of children... Korczak's protection of the child from the world of adults... resulted from his false assessment of social relations... Contrary to appearances of radicalism in his youth, Korczak very clearly represented a trend of petty-bourgeois ideology... Korczak... delved into the characteristics of individual individuals or types of children. We must climb up to their feelings, climb, reach, stand on tiptoe, reach. 'This is precisely what gave his system a pedological character... In this way, Korczak essentially ceased to be a pedagogue.' / pp. 269-279/ The consequences were not long in coming. Korczak was officially struck off the list of pedagogues, and his works were ordered to be destroyed by a secret government decree. This is history, Stalinist times, a period of errors and distortions - as it is called in Poland. True, but one must return to history so that it does not repeat itself. So that, for example, like Dębnicki and T. Karren, unsubstantiated information is not replicated. So that Korczak's earlier "summary" by A. Lewin, who there discredits Korczak as a pedagogue and deprecates his life's work, is not returned to again. The reference in the Introduction to the first edition of J. Korczak's Selected Works by Lewin /Vol 1, p. 10/ is intended to explain what the Lewin of 1978 thinks about Lewin the author of "Problems of Collective Education". I quote: "I can refer in this place to my own views, which I professed in 'Problems of Collective Education'. Warsaw, 1953 PZWS". This enigmatic and too modestly formulated note may sometimes serve as an encouragement to study the highly problematic "Problems...". The use of the past tense undoubtedly has its own meaning... Page 7 I am pleased that Lewin's views on the life and work of the Old Doctor have been re-evaluated, that he has reoriented his approach to Korczak's thoughts and experiences. I am convinced that Prof. Aleksandra Lewin is capable of giving precisely articulated expression to her current views. And even to address the mistakes made by others. I will allow myself to return to K. Dębnicki's previously mentioned work. The author there claims that...". Korczak was a socialist "/emphasis K.D. p. 169/...even "a pioneer of the development of revolutionary thought..." He refers to Ida Meżan here: "In her memoirs, Ida found herself intuitively very close to just such answers to the question: what was he striving for? Answers confirming the socialism of Korczak's aspirations. However, the author of the memoirs overlooked the fact that she was on the verge of these answers; something stopped her." /p. 169/ Yes, something stopped her, but Dębnicki...it didn't. Aharon Jadlin, in the introduction to Josef Arnon's interesting brochure: "Who was Janusz Korczak" /Tel Aviv 1973/ stated neither more nor less that "Janusz Korczak was a Zionist... He also, just like Herzl...etc." It is worth remembering that Jadlin, when he wrote this, was the minister of education and culture of the State of Israel. Korczak himself called himself a man of a lonely path. And from all these "discoveries" and labels stuck to him, such as: no pedagogue, advocate of beautiful ideas like how to love a child, secret advisor on how to beat children; Zionist; socialist; pioneer of the development of revolutionary thought - a true mess, chaos, cacophony arises. Let the voice of Prof. Maria Grzegorzewska, co-creator of special pedagogy on the international stage, resound in this tone. This distinguished scholar actually collaborated with Korczak for many years. I quote after her, with some abbreviations: "One can speak of him very timidly, because overwhelm... ...her greatness in the simplicity and truth of life. And although I worked with him for many years, I write about him with a distinct sense of inadequacy / p. 53/. How deeply he understood the child... how he taught parents to raise and teachers to look at them closely with his own eyes. And later to help them in their development and in entering social life. A modest man, who goes straight through life on the path of truth and a deep sense of responsibility, in quiet, completely selfless social service / p. 53/. Korczak liberated the truth just by his presence. Everyone in his presence became themselves, was themselves... One could feel the entire smallness of phrases and non-essential forms... Korczak brings invaluable treasures into our educational life and into the foundations of educational theory... serves his goal in deed, word, and writing as a practical educator, fighter for children's rights, psychologist-discoverer of their rights, doctor, writer, lecturer ..... He is not only a guide for those wandering in the labyrinths and mysteries of a child's life, but a faithful friend by choice and love and is often a strict guardian of children's rights in deep concern for their future fate, and thus the fate of our tomorrow / pp. 59-60 / In 1936, the world of science solemnly celebrated the centenary of the birth of Prof. Tadeusz Kotarbiński, already half a century earlier named the Warsaw Socrates. He was an authority not only in matters of reason, but also in matters of conscience. Regarding Doctor Janusz Korczak, Kotarbiński spoke in the "Conversation" on the subject of the independent ethics he represented: "It is about getting into the essence of ethical evaluation, reminding oneself of the most striking cases of base behaviour and venerable behaviour. An example of base behaviour, the traditional example of Judas's silver pieces. Here a wretched man betrayed another, who had reason to believe that the other could be trusted - betrayed him, handed him over to great x+ Maria Grzegorzewska: Letters to a Young Teacher, cycle 2, PZWS 1958.
torment, in order to obtain some economic, miserable equivalent. And now, the supremely venerable behavior, the universally known act of Doctor Korczak. So, a man who consciously refused his own relative protection, went to his own torment, to the end to complete the care of those who trusted him. And in this case, it was children. It might not have been children. Now — if we empathize with such facts, we come together to certain convictions... The essence of a base act, on the other hand, is behavior directly contrary to the behavior of a guardian who can be relied upon in difficult circumstances. He must be a good person... brave, because that is precisely how he proves that he is a valiant guardian, when he can risk himself while in charge. Furthermore, he must be an honest person, keeping his word. So people who trust him can count on the fact that he will not fail them. That is the essence of honesty....*/ I would like to have the conviction that we, contemporary Korczakians, also belong to people one can rely on, to reliable people, brave, honest, who will not fail when anyone — consciously or quite unconsciously — places the Old Doctor before a distorted mirror. That is why I decided to raise this matter among people of science in your country. I do not know if I will succeed in evoking the desired reaction. At least the feeling of having tried becomes a source of human peace. In "Herszek's Three Expeditions", Korczak wrote: "There was a war. Titus burned the temple. The books of God were burning, but only the paper was burning. The letters flew away and live." From these scattered letters, let us try to arrange the words of truth! Igor Newerly, several decades ago, used an apt metaphor, saying that Korczak appears to us somewhere between St. Francis of Assisi and...a grandpa on a Christmas tree. It is high time for him to stop "appearing" to anyone...! */Meeting /Al. Małachowskiego/ with Tadeusz Kotarbiński". "Literatura" 25.5. 1972. Conversation on the topic of independent ethics, represented and initiated by T.K.. |
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