Slavdom by Polish Eyes: pro et contra

Abstract

The article is devoted to the analysis of the so-called Slavic idea, which played a significant role in the history of Polish thought. The background was the Polish-Russian relations, which were determined by political, historical and cultural rivalry. That rivalry could be understood as a struggle for primacy in the Slavic world, which was immeasurably intensifi ed by the decisive participation of Russia in the partition of Poland. However, the integrativity as the basis of the Slavic idea, in the 20th century, rather quickly underwent decomposition. Th e most significant Latin Slavs — the Poles, freed themselves from their Slavic roots, leaving them to Russia, displacing it (because of Slavism) — forever and fatalistically (ethnographically, naturalistically, genetically) — outside Europe.