A novelist and writer of short stories, reporter, essayist, screenwriter and translator. Born in Warsaw in 1919, died in Kraków in 2003.
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Szczepański had the most "adventurous" biography of all Polish authors, even though he himself was one of the most modest: a soldier in the September, 1939 campaign, a resistance movement conspirator, partisan, mountain climber, yachtsman and traveler. He was also an outstanding moral authority. The author of profound reflections on the secular sources of ethics (Before an Unknown Tribunal) and a writer who never bowed to political pressure, Szczepański was the last legitimate president of the Polish Writer's Union and fought to the end against the disbanding of the organization by the Martial Law authorities – as described in Term of Office.
Szczepański has written a great deal about war. Polish Autumn is a straightforward novel about the September defeat, and Boots is a collection of partisan tales that casts a critical eye on the heroic legend of the 'people in the forests'. Icarus and The Island offer a bitter recounting of the life of a very young Polish insurrectionist of 1863 who later emigrates to France and ends up as a failed assassin of Tsar Alexander II. Szczepański had a soft spot for losers and lost causes, especially when they are painful and morally ambivalent. Nevertheless, he sometimes seemed merciless to his protagonists, subjecting them to shocking experiences while laying bare the dark and shameful sides of their lives. Szczepański was equally at home in the novel and the short story, and also knew how to tell a ripping comic yarn, whether it is cut fantastically from whole cloth (Odysseus's Shorts) or based on his own real-life adventures, which he was able to recount without any glorification (Little Stories). He was sensitive to the charms of the world and the multiplicity of cultures, and had described his travels to various continents in several volumes of reportage. He was also a skilful and seasoned screenwriter.
Selected works:
- Portki Odysa (Odysseus's Shorts) (novel). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1954.
- Polska Jesień (Polish Autumn) (novel). Kraków: WL, 1955.
- Buty i Inne Opowiadania (Boots and other stories), Kraków: WL, 1956.
- Pojedynek (Duel), (novel) Kraków: WL, 1957.
- Tombakowy Pierścionek i Inne Opowiadania (The Fool's-Gold Ring and Other Stories) (with B. Mankowski). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1957.
- Ikar (Icarus) (novel). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1966.
- Wyspa (The Island) (novel-sequel to Icarus). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1968.
- Opowiadania Dawne i Dawniejsze (Stories Old and Even Older). Kraków: WL, 1973.
- Rafa (The Reef) (stories). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1974.
- Przed Nieznanym Trybunałem (Before an Unknown Tribunal) (essays). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1975.
- Autograf (stories and plays). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1979.
- Trzy Podróże (Three Journeys) (non-fiction). Kraków: WL, 1981.
- Kadencja (Term of Office) (memoirs). Kraków: Oficyna Litercka, 1986.
- Ultima Thule (stories). Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1987.
- Maleńka Encyklopedia Totalizmu (A Miniature Encyclopedia of Totalitarianism). Kraków: Znak, 1990.
- Historyjki (Little Tales) Warsaw: Czytelnik, 1990.
- Mija Dzień (The Day Passes) (stories). Kraków: WL, 1994.
- Wszyscy Szukamy (We're All Still Searching) (essays). Warsaw: Biblioteka Wiezi, 1998.
- Rozłogi (The Fields). Kraków: WL, 2001.
Selected translations:
- German: Japanische Blumen: Erzählungen und Betrachtungen [Japońskie Kwiaty], Frankfurt/Main: Suhrkamp, 1988. Der polnische Herbst [Polska Jesień], Frankfurt a.M.: Insel Verlag, 1983.Vor dem unbekannten Tribunal [Przed Nieznanym Trybunałem], Frankfurt a.M.: Suhrkamp, 1979. Ikarus [Ikar], Frankfurt a.M.: Suhrkamp, 1988. Die Insel [Wyspa], Frankfurt a.M., 1988.
- Flemish: Moderne Poolse verhalen (anthology), Amsterdam, Van Gennet, 1982.
- Czech: Osudny Podzim [Polska Jesień], Prahá: Nase Vojsko, 1976.
- Hungarian: Árulas [Stajnia na Celnej], Kossuth, 1962. Odüsozeusz a negyekben [Portki Odysa], Budapest: Europa, 1961. Elteszálök (anthology), Budapest: Europa, 1965.
Source: www.polska2000.pl, Copyright: Stowarzyszenie Willa Decjusza
