Olga Tokarczuk's new novel to be revealed at Mountains of Literature festival
Translated from Polish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
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New plan
- Olga Tokarczuk will reveal the title and cover of her new novel at the Góry Literatury festival on July 10.
- The novel explores the history of one of Europe's largest post-WWII population displacements, focusing on communities resettled in Lower Silesia.
- The festival's theme, "Territories," will be explored through Tokarczuk's work and discussions with experts on migration, history, and literature.
Nobel laureate Olga Tokarczuk is set to unveil her latest novel at the upcoming Góry Literatury (Mountains of Literature) festival. On Friday, July 10, at Zamek Sarny in Ścinawka Górna, Tokarczuk will reveal the title and cover of her new book, which delves into the complex history of post-World War II population shifts in Europe.
The novel focuses on the experiences of communities resettled in areas like Lower Silesia, a region in southwestern Poland. This theme aligns with the festival's central topic for its 12th edition: "Territories." Tokarczuk's work is expected to initiate conversations about the concept of territory, borders, and the human experiences that shape them, drawing from an unpublished essay-lecture she delivered in Florence earlier this year.
The border is designed to define the size of a territory. To encircle a structure that pretends to be natural, and present it as if it has always existed, even though it is the result of negotiations, conflicts, legal acts, and violence.
In her essay, Tokarczuk reflects on how borders are constructed through legal actions, conflicts, and violence, turning land into a territory imbued with meaning by human division and demarcation. "Territory becomes a being only when people give it meaning and significance through the act of dividing and setting borders," she writes, highlighting the creation of "superordinate identity" and belonging.
The festival will further explore these themes through discussions with various experts, including anthropologist Karolina Ćwiek-Rogalska, political scientist Tomasz Grabowski, and German historian Andreas Kossert. Researchers Didier Fassina and Anne-Claire Defossez will discuss migration. The event also features Bulgarian author Georgi Gospodinow, winner of the International Booker Prize, discussing his short story collection "Everything Became the Moon."
Territory becomes a being only when people give it meaning and significance through the act of dividing and setting borders.
DistantNews Editorial
Originally published by Rzeczpospolita in Polish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.
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