Oldal 419 [419]
OCR
Silesia—Stranger/Not Stranger. Creating Regional Identity ception would help them to develop feeling of being at home. Moreover, the illustrations conveyed the message to voices demanding revision of the new Poland’s borders, claiming that the Regained Territories were and are Polish and have the same historical roots as all other Polish regions. As I already mentioned, the authors of the photos are either unknown or uncertain. Some pictures were probably taken by German photographers before the war. In this situation the interpretation of the photos must be based on their context, that is the magazine in which they were published, and its time. SMI can be seen as a guidebook to the Regained Territories. Objects presented on its pages can be also found in today’s books listing places in the region that deserve to be visited—outstanding architectural monuments or natural attractions. Illustrations with historical commentary would create, according to the intentions of the editors, an atmosphere of objectivity. However, a close look reveals that certain specific historical topics are repeated, all of them related to the Piast Dynasty. In contrast, events of other periods are treated much more superficially. It is especially true of the time when Silesia was within the zone of German political and cultural influence. In fact this process had already started during the lifetime of the last Piasts, what was also omitted. Such a selective narration corresponds with the editors’ objectives. They showed only those elements that could be linked with the history of Poland and used to create a Polish identity for the Regained Territories. Today was presented using peaceful landscapes, children playing and people at work, that is, pictures of everyday life. In that way the editors were shaping (or rather manipulating) their readers’ perceptions of the Regained Territories. In this respect, remarks by Krzysztof Olechnicki, that creating knowledge and creating photos are “social processes, in the context of which ‘reality’ and its perception appear as products of a cultural character, i.e. as changeable and ephemeral” are interesting (Olechnicki 2003: 129; translation by E. Baniowska-Kopacz). These remarks can be applied to the photos from the magazine. Each of them was the pretext for telling a story. All of them taken together paint a broad picture of today and past realities perceived through the prism of the editors. In the case analysed here we observe the creation of knowledge through the selection of photos. Therefore, the picture of the Regained Territories in the journal mainly reflects the point of view of its editors, who had the objective of shaping reality according to actual needs. Sources Slask. Miesiecznik Mustrowany (‘Silesia. Monthly Illustrated’) 1946, no. 1; no. 2; nos 3-4; nos 5-6; no. 7; nos 8-9. Slask. Miesiecznik Ilustrowany (‘Silesia. Monthly Illustrated’) 1947, nos 2-3; nos 4-5; nos 6-7; nos 8-9. 417
