How Did Censorship In 20th Century Poland Affect Szymborska

We discussed how the censorship in 20th century Poland affected Szymborska’s works, extending to 21st century. I initially perceived censorship as a tool to restrain freedom of speech and promote propagandas. However, I reconsidered that it provided her the opportunity for real creativity to bloom as she manoeuvred around the censorship with a subtle tone that carries a defiant undercurrent. What intrigued me further was the readers’ – mainly Polish – response to her censored poetry. Some who were engaged in the discussion shared their personal experiences or stories of their close Polish relatives who lived in Poland during the period of Soviet communist dominance. As opposed to my prior belief that they would have taken Szymborska’s pro-communist works seriously and possibly be influenced, most of them remained unswayed and did not take it seriously, even finding it humorous. Most of them mocked the overly glorified communism in her

I previously thought that her characteristically humble tone rooted in her personality, but I learned that it is actually a regretful apology for her past works. After the censorship was lifted, Szymborska regained freedom to express her ideas and started to question and confront the political system through poetry. She dealt with terrorism, a politically sensitive topic especially after 9/11, in a poem introduced in one of the presentations : “The Terriorist, He’s watching” (2003). Without making any reference to terrorism apart from the soon-to-be exploding bomb, she describes the scene of an impending terror with a disturbingly calm tone. The juxtaposition of her detached tone and the tragic scene accentuates death’s cruelty. I developed further sympathy for the suffers in the world, including the ones of historical tragedies and aftermath of