Alina Nowak, Oratorium oświęcimskie [Auschwitz Oratorio]

Halina Filipowicz (University of Wisconsin)

Ed. by Roman Koropeckyj, University of California, Los Angeles
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.8.3: Polish Writing and Culture.
Vol. editors: Roman Koropeckyj (University of California, Los Angeles), Ewa M. Thompson (Rice University)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1970

Places

Poland (Country of Origin; Publication/ performance)

Genres and Modes

Drama
Music (any)
- Classical Music
  - Oratorio

Resources

Alina Nowak’s drama, Oratorium oświęcimskie [Auschwitz Oratorio, 1970], is set in Auschwitz-Birkenau. That sentence almost closes the subject. One might be tempted to conclude that we already have sufficient knowledge of this sprawling camp complex that housed Nazi Germany’s largest killing center for European Jews. Such a conclusion, however, would be too hasty. As Peter Hayes, a leading historian of the Holocaust, points out, “Much about what happened [in Auschwitz-Birkenau] still awaits elucidation” (Hayes, 331).

How Auschwitz-Birkenau has come to represent the “capital of the Holocaust” is well documented (Hayes, 330). In contrast, documentation on births in the camp is riddled w…

Please log in to consult the article in its entirety. If you are a member (student of staff) of a subscribing institution (see List), you should be able to access the LE on campus directly (without the need to log in), and off-campus either via the institutional log in we offer, or via your institution's remote access facilities, or by creating a personal user account with your institutional email address. If you are not a member of a subscribing institution, you will need to purchase a personal subscription. For more information on how to subscribe as an individual user, please see under Individual Subcriptions.

2175 words

Citation: Filipowicz, Halina. "Oratorium oświęcimskie". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 October 2021 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=40585, accessed 21 November 2024.]

Save this article