Abstract: | The subject of the article is the image of the city contained in the reportage by Marcin
Kącki entitled Białystok. Biała siła, czarna pamięć (Białystok. White Power, Black
Memory). The author of the article, by means of employing the theory of the linguistic
picture of the world, evaluation, and the category of a stereotype, presents the most important images and metaphors which constitute the description of Białystok. The
analysis is focused on three basic semantic fields: 1) “the self – the other” dichotomy,
realized on ethnic (the Polish – the Jews) and on religious (Catholics – Orthodox) plane;
2) the notion of multiculturalism (i.a. racial, ethnic, or sexual), generating the attitudes
of intolerance and discrimination; 3) fascist ideology that identifies the fans of Białystok’s
football team. Individual elements subjected to positive evaluation have exposed
the insignificance of such opinions in the reportage. The indicated categories have
revealed a definitely pejorative image of the city and its inhabitants. |