If you have close Polish friends or are of Polish descent living in an Anglo-Saxon country such as Canada, the U.S.A. , or England you ought to consider reading "On the Nieman" which is now finally available in English thanks to this very serviceable translation by Michelle Granas. "On the Nieman" is the acknowledged masterpiece of the Polish Positivist movement. Because it is frequently placed on secondary school literature courses, it is widely known even outside of Poland's community of book lovers. In other words, having read it, you should be able to find several people in your entourage to discuss it with. To ice the cake, there is a an outstanding cinematic adaption available on YouTube which will most certainly help you understand the novel especially the physical setting.
It is difficult for someone from the Anglo-Saxon world to enjoy Polish literature written prior to the second half of the nineteenth century because the dominant influences on Polish writers were German Romanticism and French Classicism, two movements that most English speakers are unfamiliar with. However, the literary conventions of Positivist movement of which Orzeszkowa was one of the leading figures are familiar and accessible to most English Readers.
In particular, the style of Orzeszkowa is similar to that of George Eliot. "On the Nieman" which analyzes the mentality and lifestyles the Polish Gentry living in Russia is very similar to "Middlemarch".
Whereas "Middlemarch". is set in the Midlands, On the Niemen is set on the Niemen River in what was once Poland and which is now Belarus. The heroine, Justyna, is a young woman from the smaller nobility. Because her father has squandered his inheritance, Justyna is dependent on the charity of her relatives. Having no dowry, she appears fated to a life of spinsterhood.
The son of one of the relatives who is supporting Justyna falls in love with her. The mother objects and the son flees to France in order to become an "artitiste". He returns with a young bride with a large dowry. After settling back into his home district on the Nieman River, he starts to pursue Justyna explaining to her that a woman of her status can never hope to be a wife and should be glad to be the mistress of a nobleman.
Surprisingly a legitimate suitor does emerge. He is a nobleman who after having squandered half his estate on gambling and debaucher in France has returned to his native district in Poland. He hopes that Justyna will help him cope with his addiction to morphine. In what he considers to be an act of extraordinary generosity, he proposes to Justyna despite the fact that such a union would be a tremendous "mesalliance".
Justyna repels the advances of the cousin who wants her for a mistress and politely declines the offer of the drug addict much to the horror of everyone in her entourage. Instead she makes the courageous decision to marry a nice young farmer from a social class that would correspond very loosely to the yeomanry, that is to say he owns land but is not a nobleman.
The young farmer woos Justyna by taking her to graves. First, he takes her to see the burial plot of the couple founded the community where they live in some four centuries previously. The founders had succeeded because of hard work and self-sacrifice. Still revered by the local peasants, an impressive monument is maintained over their tomb. The second grave that the farmer shows Justyna is an burial mound containing roughly 40 men who had been killed in a battle with the Russians twenty years early in the Uprisng of 1862-63 against Russia. No monuments or plaques are found near the burial ground as the Russians still rule the territory. Justyna discovers that like the young farmer she believes in the importance of work, the value of science and a desire for Polish freedom. When she announces her decision to marry the farmer she states that a major advantage to the marriage in her view is that as the wife of an independent farmer, s he will be able to perform physical work.
"On the Nieman" is a pleasure to read because of the skill with which Orzeszkowa tells the story of Justyna's romance. The two men that she rejects are truly vile individuals but their characters are developed with great subtlety and their personalities well rooted in the society of their times.
What may cause some difficulty for the reader from the Anglo-Saxon world, is that like "Middlemarch", "On the Nieman" the analysis of the history, cultural values and intellectual trends of the era. As with "Middlemarch", "On the Niemen" has many characters whose chief function is to represent the type of individual who takes one of a variety positions on one of the issues discussed. Understanding the social debate will be in places difficult for the reader from the Anglo-Saxon world and at times irritating.
Orzeszkowa savagely attacks the Polish nobles for being spendthrifts and small-minded snobs. However, the Polish nobility was an oppressed class in Tsarist Russia. Those nobles who participated the 1862-1863 Uprising and their families suffered very badly, a fact of which Orzeszkowa was very much aware but to which she could only allude in the most indirect fashion. The political commentary is one of the reasons why Poles like the book so much but for those unfamiliar with the events of the era, it is hard in many places to understand what Orzeszkowa is trying to say.
Perhaps with more reading on the era, the North American or English reader will be able to more fully understand all the points that Orzeszkowa is trying to make. However, for someone who is interested in learning, "On the Nieman" provides an outstanding introduction to the historical era. All in all, "On the Niemen" is an outstanding book offers many things to someone wishing to learn more about Poland.