EN
Leszek Szaruga’s novel is built by two interweaving narrative sequences which may be arbitrarily called photographic and historical ones. Photography and history function here through literature, in a closed off and finite semiotic system – constituted by a novel. It is literature which establishes the scope of reference for them. A photograph here is repeatedly a part of somebody’s story (by inscribing itself into the anthology of private narratives), while a story is somebody’s “photograph” (by inscribing itself into the album taken from history archives). Historic qualities of photography and, conversely, photographic ones of history determine each other mutually. A photograph presenting starving people in Africa triggers a character’s reflection, whereas co-existence of beauty and terror in a photograph makes him embark on a number of actions: photographing the photograph, or optical enlarging of its details. This, in turn, seems to constitute a kind of simulation of participating in the presented events which indicates taking up a hermeneutical game with reality. 20th century history of Poland, viewed from a perspective of the 1990s, is being written out for a set of life histories of people who represent different generations, thus forming a historic narrative chain in the novel. The novel’s polylogue on historical topics, as well as reflection revealed by the character under the influence of the viewed photograph create a dynamic anthropological project based on an assumption that being outside history is utopia, while existence means activeness, consciousness, and responsibility.