A new, annotated prose translation of Poland’s great national poem. Pan Tadeusz is a classic tale of romance, mystery, war, and patriotism set in the turbulent Napoleonic era.
Read MoreA new, annotated prose translation of Poland’s great national poem. Pan Tadeusz is a classic tale of romance, mystery, war, and patriotism set in the turbulent Napoleonic era.
Read MoreArguably the most authoritative English translation of Poland’s great national poem.
Sometimes called the “last epos in world literature,” Pan Tadeusz (first published in Paris in 1834) is a classic tale of romance, mystery, war, and patriotism set in the turbulent Napoleonic era. The old Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth lies dismembered and erased from the political map of Europe by the great powers of Russia, Prussia, and Austria. A brief ray of hope rekindles national aspirations when Napoleon Bonaparte establishes the Grand Duchy of Warsaw by the terms of the Treaty of Tilsit (1807) and sets the stage for his invasion of Russia.
“Truly a masterpiece! Christopher Adam Zakrzewski has accomplished the impossible: he has rendered in prose what seemed possible only in poetry. Poland’s great epic poem can now be read as a delightful historical tale replete with Romantic irony. Zakrzewski’s mastery of the English language is remarkable.”
— Ewa Thompson, Rice University
“In this extraordinarily fine prose rendering, Christopher Adam Zakrzewski brings his own prodigious gifts as a poet and translator to one of the great classics of world literature. The fruit of Zakrzewski’s decades-long labors, this book is a treasure of immeasurable value.
— Michael D. O’Brien, novelist, painter
“Perfectly smooth, highly expressive, subtly nuanced, Christopher Adam Zakrzewski’s translation does full justice to this brightest jewel in the crown of Polish literature.”
— Kazimierz Braun, Polish author, scholar, theater artist
“Christopher Adam Zakrzewski’s English prose is marvelously, not to say magically consonant with the poetical richness of Mickiewicz’s great Polish national saga.”
— Dr. Olga Glagoleva, Senior Associate, Centre for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto
“Pan Tadeusz is a masterpiece of Romantic literature and a key to the heart, mind, and soul of the Polish people and nation. This new edition will, I hope, make a challenging text far more accessible to the broad audience that Adam Mickiewicz deserves.”
— Professor George Weigel, Distinguished Senior Fellow and William E. Simon Chair in Catholic Studies, Ethics and Public Policy Center
“Adam Mickiewicz was and is the dominant figure in Polish Romanticism and is seen as playing the same pivotal role in the Romantic movement in Poland as that played by Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, and Sir Walter Scott in the English-speaking world. As such, all lovers of the great books of western civilization will welcome this new translation of the Polish national epic, Pan Tadeusz.”
— Joseph Pearce, Visiting Professor of Literature, Ave Maria University
Acknowledgments
Preface: Adam Mickiewicz and Pan Tadeusz, by Dr. Andrzej Waśko
Translator’s Preface
List of Main Characters
Author’s Note
BOOK I: The Manor
BOOK II: The Castle
BOOK III: Romantic Pursuits
BOOK IV: Diplomacy and the Hunt
BOOK V: The Brawl
BOOK VI: The Noble Village
BOOK VII: The Council
BOOK VIII: The Foray
BOOK IX: The Battle
BOOK X: Emigration. Jacek
BOOK XI: The Year 1812
BOOK XII: Let Us Love One Another!
About the Translator
Arguably the most authoritative English translation of Poland’s great national poem.
Sometimes called the “last epos in world literature,” Pan Tadeusz (first published in Paris in 1834) is a classic tale of romance, mystery, war, and patriotism set in the turbulent Napoleonic era. The old Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth lies dismembered and erased from the political map of Europe by the great powers of Russia, Prussia, and Austria. A brief ray of hope rekindles national aspirations when Napoleon Bonaparte establishes the Grand Duchy of Warsaw by the terms of the Treaty of Tilsit (1807) and sets the stage for his invasion of Russia.
“Truly a masterpiece! Christopher Adam Zakrzewski has accomplished the impossible: he has rendered in prose what seemed possible only in poetry. Poland’s great epic poem can now be read as a delightful historical tale replete with Romantic irony. Zakrzewski’s mastery of the English language is remarkable.”
— Ewa Thompson, Rice University
“In this extraordinarily fine prose rendering, Christopher Adam Zakrzewski brings his own prodigious gifts as a poet and translator to one of the great classics of world literature. The fruit of Zakrzewski’s decades-long labors, this book is a treasure of immeasurable value.
— Michael D. O’Brien, novelist, painter
“Perfectly smooth, highly expressive, subtly nuanced, Christopher Adam Zakrzewski’s translation does full justice to this brightest jewel in the crown of Polish literature.”
— Kazimierz Braun, Polish author, scholar, theater artist
“Christopher Adam Zakrzewski’s English prose is marvelously, not to say magically consonant with the poetical richness of Mickiewicz’s great Polish national saga.”
— Dr. Olga Glagoleva, Senior Associate, Centre for European, Russian, and Eurasian Studies, Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto
“Pan Tadeusz is a masterpiece of Romantic literature and a key to the heart, mind, and soul of the Polish people and nation. This new edition will, I hope, make a challenging text far more accessible to the broad audience that Adam Mickiewicz deserves.”
— Professor George Weigel, Distinguished Senior Fellow and William E. Simon Chair in Catholic Studies, Ethics and Public Policy Center
“Adam Mickiewicz was and is the dominant figure in Polish Romanticism and is seen as playing the same pivotal role in the Romantic movement in Poland as that played by Wordsworth, Coleridge, Byron, and Sir Walter Scott in the English-speaking world. As such, all lovers of the great books of western civilization will welcome this new translation of the Polish national epic, Pan Tadeusz.”
— Joseph Pearce, Visiting Professor of Literature, Ave Maria University
Acknowledgments
Preface: Adam Mickiewicz and Pan Tadeusz, by Dr. Andrzej Waśko
Translator’s Preface
List of Main Characters
Author’s Note
BOOK I: The Manor
BOOK II: The Castle
BOOK III: Romantic Pursuits
BOOK IV: Diplomacy and the Hunt
BOOK V: The Brawl
BOOK VI: The Noble Village
BOOK VII: The Council
BOOK VIII: The Foray
BOOK IX: The Battle
BOOK X: Emigration. Jacek
BOOK XI: The Year 1812
BOOK XII: Let Us Love One Another!
About the Translator
