The Contemporary Stereotype of the Polish Gentry and its Historical Conditions

Abstract

Stereotypes constitute an important measure to explain past and present reality. Therefore, they are a significant component of awareness of all times and every space. They enable simple and unequivocal definition and justification of the past and the resulting present, marked by the social order typical for it, as well as the dominant political forces and the existing hierarchy of values. In this context, stereotypes have always been associated with the conscious propaganda of current power centers. In practice, they allow not only to diminish competitors, but above all they occupy a permanent place in the general awareness. The final effect of these types of efforts is to include stereotypical beliefs about the value or anti-value of individuals, social groups and entire nations in this awareness. Moreover, even when the validity of a given propaganda expires, the once-established stereotype remains alive.

The contemporary stereotype of Polish nobility is not only a product of our time. Old Polish preachers, intellectuals of bourgeois and peasant origin, anti-Polish spokesmen and antinobility propaganda promoted during the partitions, as well as architects of the post-war political system who made the nobility the number one enemy worked on this frame of mind. The final effect is a clearly negative image of a modern nobleman. To a large extent it has been based on an equally negative stereotype. A survey conducted on selected groups of high school students, students and PhD students entitles us to make such statements. The same conclusions arise from an analysis of school textbooks and direct observation of media communication in the form of educational portals. They all make up a collective portrait of native nobility, in which flaws take precedence over merits, while the slogan that has been popular nowadays: “the nobility does not work” should be considered the essence of antinobility myth.

Keywords:

Polish gentry, stereotype, myth, image, personal model, antimodel, noble values, moral standards, propaganda, Sarmatism, tradition, culture