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PaulMcNamara,BeyondtheIronCurtain:WesternTravellersintheBorderlandsofCommunistPoland...
allocatedhomes.Forexample,inonehouseinWrocławIsawhowablue-collar
workerwassetlednextdoortoaprofessor,whilerightnexttohimwaspersonfrom
thecountryside.Thiswasdonesothatthefamilyoftheworkerorthepeasant
couldimprovethemselves.Theykeptcoalinthekitchenandhadchickensonthe
balcony,Ialsosawagoat.Theyusedkitchendrawersorwardrobesforstoring
underwear.Theassumptionwasthatlivingnextdoortoamemberoftheintel-
ligentsiaandtheso-calledbourgeoisie,whichofciallydidn’texist,theycould
learnfromeachother.Andsothewivesoftheworkersandpeasantswenttothe
wivesoftheintelligentsiaandtoldthemthattheyshouldusetheshelvesinthe
kitchenforstoringcutleryandcrockery...13
AlthoughtracesofGermancultureandarchitecturecouldbeeasilyobserved
intheseformerlyGermanlands,Kruszewskiwasverymuchtakenabackbythe
strenuousefortsPolishsetlersmadetoignorethem.Despiteroutinelyusingthe
Polishwordponiemieckie,meaningIex-German’,todescribethechurches,houses,
farmsandobjectstheyhadIinherited’fromtheirpreviousowners,theissueof
theregion’sGermanculturalheritagewasconsideredataboosubject.Holding
suchatitudesmayhaveconstitutedsomekindofdefencemechanismgiventhat,
inthelate1950s,theGerman-Polishborderwasstillconsideredanopenquestion
withstrenuousefortsbeingmadebyGermanpoliticiansandexpelleeorganisa-
tionstohavethedecisiontakenatthePotsdamConferencereversedinorderthat
Germanywouldregainitspre-warborders.Feelingsofanxietyanduncertainty
werenothelpedbythefactthateventheVaticanappearedtobehedgingitsbets
byrefusingtoestablishpermanentPolishdiocesesintheRecoveredTerritories
untilthe1970s.
OneofKruszewski’skeygoalsinvisitingPoland’snewlyacquiredlandsin
thenorthandwestwastoobservethedevelopmentofanopencastlignitemine
atBogatynia,locatedinacornerofsouthwestPolandborderingGermanyand
Czechoslovakia.SinceconstructionworkwascommencedontheadjacentTurów
electricalpowerplantduringhisvisitin1959,Kruszewskisawwithhisowneyes
theprocessofmodernisationoftheRecoveredTerritoriesandconsidereditas
aprimeexampleofharnessingtheirpotentialtosuchadegreethatitwouldmake
themanintegralandinseparablepartofthepost-warPolishstate.Atthesame
time,hewasalsointerestedinthesocialanddemographicstructureofaregion
inwhichthePolishgovernmentwasatemptingtobuildanentirelynewsociety
fromscratch:
WhenIheardabouttheminegoingintooperationatBogatyniaandtheplansto
buildapowerplant,Idecidedtoseeit.Itwasafascinatingstory,actuallythey
hadstartedtheconstructionwork,themomentumwithwhichitwasbeingdone
wasreallyimpressive.Alreadyatthattime,planswerebeingdiscussedthatthe
coalmightalsobedeliveredtoGermany,ontheothersideoftheborder.Ialso
knewthatthiswasaregionwhichhadbeeninhabitedbeforethewarbyaSlavic
group–theLusatians.Ihadhopesofencounteringthemthere,butthenitturned
13
QuotedinHalicka,p.213.
