Nauka i Sztuka (October 1945 – September 1948): The first learned journal published in Poland's Western Territories after World War II

Abstract

The monthly Nauka i Sztuka [Science and Art] was the first learned magazine to be published in Poland's Western Territories after 1945. Initially, it had two chief editors, Julian Krzyżanowski and Stefan Maria Kuczyński; soon, however, the latter resigned his post. The magazine covered developments in science, literature, the arts, culture, as well as regional themes. In 1948, as the communist authorities tightened the screws on the Wrocław media that did not cut ties with authors who had entered journalism before the war or that did not do enough to educate their readers about the new Western Territories and their Polish past, Nauka i Sztuka ceased publication.
Combining the historical, bibliographical and critical approaches, this article presents a formal analysis of the magazine's profile and an examination of some parts of its content. An assessment of its treatment of themes connected with the Western, or 'Recovered Territories', shows that it consistently kept on high standards, not least by relying on knowledgeable and competent authors. What they wrote could hardly contribute to the formation of a properly politicized historical consciousness, both on the individual and the collective level, that the new regime badly needed. In these circumstances, the decision to shut down Nauka i Sztuka was only natural.