Obraz Polski jako nowego członka Unii Europejskiej na łamach „Die Welt” w pierwszych latach po akcesji 2004–2006

• Authors: Jacek Piotrowski

Title variants

EN

THE IMAGE OF POLAND AS A NEW MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN UNION AS PRESENTED BY “DIE WELT” IN THE EARLY YEARS AFTER ACCESSION – BETWEEN 2004 AND 2006

• Languages of publication: PL

Abstracts

EN

The perception of Poland in Germany is largely derivative of the image created in the media, including the most opinion-forming newspapers. It appears advisable in every respect to analyze their content from this angle. Using the example of “Die Welt”, the author seeks answers to the questions about what factors and events had a dominant impact on building the image of Poland in Germany in the early years of Poland’s EU membership. The analysis of the newspaper’s content made it possible to show what events and person played a crucial role in building Poland’s image in 2004-2006. The examined period covers the first two years after 1 May 2004, an extremely tumultuous period in Polish-German mutual relations. Far-reaching conflicts of interests are observable, concerning inter alia military cooperation with the US, the construction of the gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, problems of historical occurrences associated with the case of the so-called “expellees”, and, perhaps the most important issue: a clearly different vision of the future European Union. All these factors and a distinct cultural difference produced a sharp crisis in mutual relations at the end of the period in question. The author tried to indicate the factors that contributed to this and the reason while a clash was even inevitable. Many of the research questions outlined in the introductory part require further in-depth studies. However, the analysis of texts in “Die Welt” confirms that the most significant reason for such a sharp conflict was Warsaw’s undisguised aspirations to play an independent role in European policy, often against the stance of the previously leading member countries, which could not accept such a rapid emancipation.

Keywords

EN

THE IMAGE OF POLAND; POLAND AS A NEW MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN UNION; ACCESSION; “DIE WELT” (NEWSPAPER)

• Publisher: Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Marii Curie-Skłodowskiej
• Journal: Res Historica
• Year: 2012
• Issue: 34
• Pages: 165-189

Contributors

author

Jacek Piotrowski

• Institute of History, University of Wrocław, ul. Szewska49, 50-139 Wrocław, Poland