Home | Books By Year | Books from 1876
An Ancient Tale (novel)
Buy An Ancient Tale (novel) now from AmazonFirst, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the book. And once you've experienced the book, tell everyone what you thought about it.
Wikipedia article
'An Ancient Tale. Novel of Polish history' (in Polish 'Stara ba. Powie z dziejw Polski') - is a historical novel by popular 19th-century Polish writer Jzef Ignacy Kraszewski published by 'Gebethner i Wolff' (Gebethner & Wolff Publishers) in 1876 in Warsaw, then part of the Russian Empire. This work was the first novel in Kraszewski's long series of historical novels dealing with various periods in Poland's history. The second edition was published in 1879, in a lavishly illustrated form, with the plates done by then popular illustrator Micha Elwiro Andriolli. The manuscript of the novel was destroyed during World War II.
The content of the novel refers to old Polish stories and legends, including one about a cruel ruler prince, Popiel. He is one of the novel's main characters, though the author calls him "Chwostek". The story takes place during the dimly known times of pre-Christian Poland, in the lands of the pagan Polans tribe.
The first theme of the novel is the political struggle between Chwostek, his wife Brunhilda and their court, as against the clans and free farmers. The Prince wants to introduce an absolute rule modeled on that of the Holy Roman Emperor, while his subjects want to preserve their freedoms. As the struggle intensifies, The Prince commits ever more cruel acts (mutilations, murders etc.), causing his subjects to openly rebel against his rule. Weaker in warriors and support, the Prince calls for help from his German allies and a civil war rages. Finally Chwostek and his allies are defeated, he and his family die during the siege of his keep, and the clans and free farmers elect a new ruler, Piast the Wheelwright.
The second theme of the novel, in addition to political, is the thread of love. Doman, a young but wealthy farmer and warrior, falls in love with beautiful Dziwa. She, however, believes that her calling is to serve the pagan gods, and therefore refuses to become his wife. Doman decides to do anything to win her love.
Adaptations
The novel has been a subject of many adaptions:
* In 1891 Alfred Szczepaski published a drama in five parts based on the themes of 'Stara ban' titled 'Piast Pierwszy' ('Piast I') in Vienna, Austria,
* In 1900 Julian Baczyski published, in Chemno, his book 'Krlewna Hoa' ('Princess Buxom') inspired by the Kraszewski's novel.
* In 1907 Wadysaw eleski brought to the Lviv's stage his opera titled 'Stara ba' ('An Ancient Tale') based on Kraszewski's work.
* In 2003 story was adapted for the screen by the film director Jerzy Hoffman as 'An Ancient Tale: When the Sun Was a God'.
See also
* [https://books.google.com/books?q=Kraszewski&btnG=Search+Books external link for info on books by J.I. Kraszewski ] google books search (accessed on Aug.16. 2009)
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090417072736/http://univ.gda.pl/~literat/autors/kraszew.htm Biographical note and novel text in VIRTUAL LIBRARY OF POLISH LITERATURE ]
Sources
Category:Polish novels
Category:1876 novels
Category:Polish historical novels
Category:19th-century Polish novels
Buy An Ancient Tale (novel) now from Amazon
<-- Return to books from 1876