Poetyckie i prozatorskie "sylwy" - wobec tradycji retorycznej

Abstract

The article aimed at arranging and correcting the state of research on the functioning of the notion of “silva” in Old-Polish discourses. Basing on an initial division into the so called “silvae rerum” and poetic “silvas”, the author of the article quotes particular paragraphs of works written by the Ancient authors (mainly by Cicero) to which the references were made later on on the occasion of using the category of “silva rerum” in rhetorical works and headings of the collections of eruditions, symbols and “well-known quotations”, etc. published. The examples in question were presented in the article preceded by a summary of the contents of the coursebooks chapters by Iuglaris (Aloysius Iuglaris) as well as Jan Kwiatkiewicz and Veranius (Caietanus Felix Veranius). Next, the tradition of understanding “silvas” deriving from Statius was discussed. The last part of the text is devoted to the relationship between strongly-rhetoricised “silvas” of Statius type, and allegedly non-rhetoricised selected “silvas” of the twentieth century.