Abstract

German history and culture is a common motif in the literary work of the Polish writer Jerzy Andrzejewski (1909-1983). For example, the crimes of the Nazis during the World War II constitute the background of Andrzejewski`s story Wielki Tydzień (Holy Week), which tells about the uprising in the Warsaw Ghetto in 1943. German artists, musicians, and authors play an important role in Andrzejewski's diaries, Z dnia na dzień (From Day to Day) and Gra z cieniem (Playing with a Shadow). In his diaries, Andrzejewski mentions several authors by name as well as titles of his favorite works. He draws on the content and emotional meaning of the classical German philosophy, literature and music. During his entire life, Andrzejewski read the works of the eminent German novelist Thomas Mann with great interest. Mann is also the main protagonist of Andrzejewski's short novel Już prawie nic (Almost nothing). For Andrzejewski and other Polish authors Mann is one of the most influential German prose writers of the 20th century.