The Polish Culture NL Foundation co-organised European Literature Night for the first time this year. The event, which took place on 28 June at de Balie in Amsterdam, was part of the rich programme of the Forum on European Culture, organised annually under the auspices of the EUNIC (European Union National Institutes of Culture). At the invitation of our Foundation, Polish-Belgian philosopher, writer and essayist, Alicja Gęścińska, performed in the programme of this unique evening.
The title of this year’s edition Against Indifference is a quotation from her essay, which the author read out at the opening of the evening, triggering further discussion. The essay’s full title is: Empathy Against Indifference: on totalitarianism and art as a moral and political force.
The aim of the organisers of European Literature Night was to initiate a debate on the role of literature and its moral impact in the face of the strengthening populist political forces in many countries, often openly favouring a totalitarian model of power. Can literature weaken right-wing radicalism and xenophobic attitudes? Can it alleviate fear and hostility towards “strangers” and towards cultural otherness?
Gęścińska’s essay argued that any art form – literature, music or painting – emotionally engages the recipient by showing the perspective of another human being and evoking empathy towards them. Totalitarianism, on the other hand, is based on indifference. This is why art consolidates democracies, allowing one to understand the point of view of others.
In the first discussion, interviewees stressed that art often lends a voice to groups discriminated against by totalitarianism: ethnic minorities, women, queer communities. They also wondered why people who were once non-radical in their views join the far right. Participants in the discussion included: Yousra Benfquih, writer, poet, while studying law she specialised in the defence of human rights (at the invitation of the Flemish cultural centre De Brakke Grond), Lauren Bastide, French writer, publicist, dealing with feminism and mental health issues (at the invitation of the Institut français NL) and Philipp Oehmke, writer and journalist, long-time US correspondent for the German media (at the invitation of the Goethe-Institute Netherlands).
After the break, the conversation continued on the essence of tyranny and the figure of the tyrant himself in the context of European literature. With the help of Dimitra Kolliakou, a Greek writer (at the invitation of the Embassy of Greece in The Hague), it was possible to go back to the very roots – to Greek mythology and drama. She cited the figure of King Oedipus as an example, pointing out that, according to ancient literary convention, a tyrant always suffered punishment for his actions, which is very different from modern reality, in which tyrants usually go unpunished. Dmitry Kolliakou’s latest novel, Kalypso, addresses the tragedy of migrants in the Mediterranean and contrasts the traditional Greek concept of hospitality called “phylloxenia” (admiration for strangers) with today’s xenophobia, which is based on fear of strangers.
The topic of the final discussion was the question: to what extent literature is and should be a political statement? Participating in the discussion were Alicja Gęścińska, Madura, an Estonian poet and writer (at the invitation of the Estonian Embassy in The Hague) and Olesya Khromeychuk, PhD historian and a publicist from Ukraine, currently heading the Institute of Ukrainian Culture in London (at the invitation of the Ukrainian Embassy). The conclusion of the discussion was that even when we ourselves are not involved in politics, it still has a huge influence on our lives and dictates the rules of the game, and literature itself is often a powerful tool for political action. From this fact comes the enormous responsibility of authors for the message they create. The written word carries ideas and experiences through time, allowing cultures whose existence and distinctiveness is denied by totalitarian power to retain their identity. This is just the case today with Ukraine, fighting with Russia for its state and cultural independence.
The European Literature Night event was very well received by the audience and was certainly a success for both our Foundation and the other organisers. It concluded with the reflection that totalitarianism is not a new phenomenon and will probably never disappear completely. Literature, however, makes it possible to expose its early forms and remind us of the dangers it poses. Although the empathy we experience through art is not enough to protect the world from tyranny, it is certainly a necessary first step to oppose it.
Monika Gimblett
We kindly invite you to watch the evening’s recording – you’ll find the video below.
