Customs and Culture in Poland under the Last Saxon King : : Selections from Opis obyczajów za panowania Augusta III by father Jędrzej Kitowicz, 1728-1804 / / Jędrzej Kitowicz.

• VerfasserIn: Kitowicz, Jędrzej,
• MitwirkendeR: Swan, Oscar E.,
• Place / Publishing House: Budapest ;, New York : : Central European University Press, , [2019]; ©2019
• Year of Publication: 2019
• Language: English
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (412 p.)

Jędrzej Kitowicz was a parish priest in central Poland with a military and worldly past. In his later years, after putting the affairs of his parish in order, he composed a colorful chronicle of all aspects and walks of life under King August III. He seems to have written mostly from memory, creating in the process the most complete record that exists of society in eighteenth-century Poland. A man with omnivorous tastes, a keen sense of observation, and a wry—at times bawdy—sense of humor, Kitowicz’s realistic and robust literary technique has been compared in its earthiness and evocativeness to Flemish genre painting. A noteworthy example of eighteenth-century writing and narrative talent, his Opis reveals an astounding visual memory and a modern ethnographer’s eye for material culture. The present book consists of fifty-one chapters, including all of the most celebrated ones, from Father Kitowicz’s Opis, complete with a comprehensive introduction. Topics include religious beliefs, customs and institutions, child-rearing, education, the judiciary and the military. Particularly vivid are the descriptions of the lives of the nobility, ranging from cooking through men’s and women’s wear to household entertainments and drinking habits. A commentary by the editor introduces each chapter.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Preface -- Glossary of Commonly Used Terms -- Jędrzej Kitowicz: To the Reader -- I. Religious Beliefs and Institutions of Piety -- 1. Religious Denominations in Poland -- 2. On Piety -- 3. The Hospital of the Baby Jesus -- 4. The Maiden Canonesses -- II. Religious Customs and Ceremonies -- 5. On Manger Scenes -- 6. Floral Sunday -- 7. Ash Wednesday. Dark Matins -- 8. The Passion Service and the Flagellants -- 9. Easter Processions and the Entombment Ceremony -- 10. The Resurrection Ceremony and Corpus Christi Procession -- 11. Easter Monday and St. John’s Eve -- III. Child-Rearing and Early Education -- 12. Child-Rearing -- 13. The Education of Children Past the Age of Seven -- 14. Public Schools -- 15. On Student Privileges -- 16. How Dąbrowski Lost His Head -- IV. Legislature and the Judiciary -- 17. On the Sejms -- 18. Eating and Drinking at the Sejmiks. Vetting Delegates -- 19. The Marshal’s Courts -- 20. On Torture -- 21. The Crown Tribunals -- 22. The Singlesticks Circle -- 23. Deputival Honors and Parades -- 24. The Conclusion of the Tribunals -- 25. The R adom Commission -- V. The Military -- 26. The Crown Foot Guard -- 27. The Company Circle -- 28. The Company Deputation for Tax Collection -- 29. The March of the Hussar and Armored Regiments -- 30. Foreign-Style Regiments -- 31. The Hetmans -- 32. The Sich and the haidamakS -- 33. On Orders -- VI. Lives and Entertainments of the Nobility -- 34. Old-Fashioned Cookery -- 35. New-Fashioned Cookery -- 36. Noble Tables and Banquets -- 37. On the Potato -- 38. Of Beds and Bedding -- 39. On Noble Palaces and Homes -- 40. On Costume or Dress -- 41. Women’s Wear: Headgear, Mantles, and Hoop Skirts -- 42. Of Snuff and Snuff Boxes -- 43. Of Bags and Watches, R ings and Pins -- 44. Household Entertainments -- 45. Of Carnivals and Kuligs -- 46. Masked Balls -- 47. Of Drinks and Drinking -- 48. On the More Famous Drunkards -- 49. Of Carriages and Conveyances -- 50. Public Convocations -- VII. On Peasant Customs -- 51. On Peasant Customs -- Appendix: Reading Kitowicz in Context -- Appendix: List of Texts Not Included -- Index -- Figures