When conducting uncompromising source-critical research within historical archives, one occasionally unearths documents carrying immense structural resonance. A singular find of this caliber is page 12 of the Polish radio magazine Antena (Volume II, No. 43, October 27, 1935). This yellowed page exposes a long-forgotten institutional intersection where the living pedagogy of Janusz Korczak was directly intertwined with the radical manifesto of the Swedish pioneer Ellen Key on prime-time Polish Radio.
THE SWEDISH-POLISH PEDAGOGICAL BRIDGE: ELLEN KEY AND JANUSZ KORCZAK IN THE RADIO ARCHIVES OF 1935.
Roman Romuald Wasserman Wróblewski
When conducting uncompromising source-critical research within historical archives, one occasionally unearths documents carrying immense, structural resonance. A singular find of this caliber is page 12 of the Polish radio magazine Antena (Volume II, No. 43, October 27, 1935). This yellowed page exposes a long-forgotten institutional intersection where the living pedagogy of Janusz Korczak was directly intertwined with the radical manifesto of the Swedish pioneer Ellen Key on prime-time Polish Radio.
The analysis of this historical press record yields two central historical revelations, coupled with an extraordinary biographical convergence:
1. The Canon of "The Grey Man": Korczak and Ellen Key Side by Side
In the left column of the page stands a summary of a radio broadcast titled “Dyskutujmy! – Człowiek w społeczeństwie” (Let Us Discuss! – Man in Society), moderated under the pseudonym “Szary Człowiek” (The Grey Man), which aired on October 30 at 17:00. To prepare the listening public for a sophisticated social and educational debate, the editors printed an official list of recommended reading.
Within this elite bibliography, alongside global thinkers such as Bertrand Russell and Charlotte Bühler, stand two absolute icons of the child's liberation, printed sequentially line after line:
- J. Korczak: “Jak kochać dziecko” (How to Love a Child)
- Ellen Key: “Stulecie dziecka” (The Century of the Child, originally published in Sweden in 1900)
This convergence carries immense historical weight. Ellen Key was the international visionary who proclaimed that the twentieth century must become "The Century of the Child," demanding a radical departure from Prussian-style corporal training, while establishing the child's absolute right to their own personality, their own tempo, and their own secrets. Janusz Korczak constructed his educational framework independently through his medical and humanitarian practice, yet he was Ellen Key's spiritual brother. The fact that the Polish State Radio in 1935 recommended these two specific masterpieces as a unified knowledge baseline proves that a vibrant intellectual bridge linked Stockholm and Warsaw long before the cataclysm of World War II.
2. “Jeszcze o audycjach dla dzieci” – The Authentic Verdict of the Old Doctor
In the right column of the very same page rests a critical, forgotten publicistic text titled “Jeszcze o audycjach dla dzieci” (More on Broadcasts for Children), composed and signed directly under Janusz Korczak’s famous moniker, “Stary Doktor” (The Old Doctor).
In this text, Korczak mounts a sharp, ironic assault against the conservative adult critics of his era. It exposes his meticulous battle for the child’s democratic right to be heard over the airwaves. He fiercely defends the letters sent to the station by young listeners, asserting that broadcasting their own words is paramount, so they understand that “the author of a letter is not a decorative figure—but a human being, just like anyone else.” He condemns the cynicism of the adult elite, dictating that radio must serve as an instrument of daily, democratic popular education, rather than "the festive attire of a tiny, closed group of figures."
A Personal Appendix: The Unbroken Circle at the Royal Library
The materialization of this 1935 Antena page closes a deep, poignant circle in my family history. During their years in Sweden, my parents actively searched for an empirical connection between Janusz Korczak and Ellen Key. Guided by their flawless scientific intuition, they turned to the National Library of Sweden (Kungliga biblioteket - KB), where Ellen Key’s extensive personal archive and correspondence are preserved. They operated under the belief that a direct exchange of letters must have existed between the two great contemporary pioneers.
Although no physical correspondence was found in the KB vaults, the page discovered today on page 12 of Antena vindicates their quest, proving that the intellectual alignment was officially recognized by the broadcasters of the era.
This lineage carries a touching geographical anchor in Stockholm. On Karlavägen 12, just stones throw away from Jarlaplan, lived my mother. In her twilight years, she would frequently sit in Ellen Key’s Park (Ellen Keys park), resting in the shadow of Carl Eldh's monument dedicated to the Swedish pioneer. Ellen Key’s memory physically and geographically watched over my family’s Swedish exile and our Korczakian heritage. Today, publishing this material record stands as a definitive triumph of truth over institutional erasure.
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| A very touching geographical anchor in Stockholm. On Karlavägen 12, just stones throw away from Jarlaplan, lived my mother. In her twilight years, she would frequently sit in Ellen Key’s Park (Ellen Keys park), resting in the shadow of Carl Eldh's monument dedicated to the Swedish pioneer. Ellen Key’s memory physically and geographically watched over my family’s Swedish exile and our Korczakian heritage. Today, publishing this material record stands as a definitive triumph of truth over institutional erasure. |
