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The Republic of Dreams
Bruno Schulz (1892 –1942) a Polish writer, fine artist, literary critic and art teacher born to Jewish parents. He is regarded as one of the great Polish-language prose stylists of the 20th century. In 1938, he was awarded the Polish Academy of Literature's prestigious Golden Laurel award.
The Republic of Dreams, available for the first time in English translation, is a stunning example of Schulz's early work. His visionary, lyrical prose captures the tumultuous and uncertain spirit of the age in which he lived, and transports the reader to a dreamy yet undefined landscape.
The Republic of Dreams, available for the first time in English translation, is a stunning example of Schulz's early work. His visionary, lyrical prose captures the tumultuous and uncertain spirit of the age in which he lived, and transports the reader to a dreamy yet undefined landscape.
7 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1964
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About the author
Bruno Schulz
121 books723 followersBruno Schulz was a Polish writer, fine artist, literary critic and art teacher of Jewish descent. He was regarded as one of the great Polish-language prose stylists of the 20th century.
At a very early age, Schulz developed an interest in the arts. He studied at a gymnasium in Drohobycz from 1902 to 1910, and proceeded to study architecture at Lwów University. In 1917 he briefly studied architecture in Vienna. After World War I, the region of Galicia which included Drohobycz became a Polish territory. In the postwar period, Schulz came to teach drawing in a Polish gymnasium, from 1924 to 1941. His employment kept him in his hometown, although he disliked his profession as a schoolteacher, apparently maintaining it only because it was his sole means of income.
The author nurtured his extraordinary imagination in a swarm of identities and nationalities: a Jew who thought and wrote in Polish, was fluent in German, and immersed in Jewish culture though unfamiliar with the Yiddish language. Yet there was nothing cosmopolitan about him; his genius fed in solitude on specific local and ethnic sources. He preferred not to leave his provincial hometown, which over the course of his life belonged to four countries. His adult life was often perceived by outsiders as that of a hermit: uneventful and enclosed.
Schulz seems to have become a writer by chance, as he was discouraged by influential colleagues from publishing his first short stories. His aspirations were refreshed, however, when several letters that he wrote to a friend, in which he gave highly original accounts of his solitary life and the details of the lives of his fellow citizens, were brought to the attention of the novelist Zofia Nałkowska. She encouraged Schulz to have them published as short fiction, and The Cinnamon Shops (Sklepy Cynamonowe) was published in 1934; in English-speaking countries, it is most often referred to as The Street of Crocodiles, a title derived from one of the chapters. This novel-memoir was followed three years later by Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass (Sanatorium Pod Klepsydrą). The original publications were fully illustrated by Schulz himself; in later editions of his works, however, these illustrations are often left out or are poorly reproduced. He also helped his fiancée translate Franz Kafka's The Trial into Polish, in 1936. In 1938, he was awarded the Polish Academy of Literature's prestigious Golden Laurel award.
The outbreak of World War II in 1939 caught Schulz living in Drohobycz, which was occupied by the Soviet Union. There are reports that he worked on a novel called The Messiah, but no trace of this manuscript survived his death. Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union, as a Jew he was forced to live in the ghetto of Drohobycz, but he was temporarily protected by Felix Landau, a Gestapo officer who admired his drawings. During the last weeks of his life, Schulz painted a mural in Landau's home in Drohobycz, in the style with which he is identified. Shortly after completing the work, Schulz was bringing home a loaf of bread when he was shot and killed by a German officer, Karl Günther, a rival of his protector (Landau had killed Günther's "personal Jew," a dentist). Over the years his mural was covered with paint and forgotten.
Source: wikipedia.com
At a very early age, Schulz developed an interest in the arts. He studied at a gymnasium in Drohobycz from 1902 to 1910, and proceeded to study architecture at Lwów University. In 1917 he briefly studied architecture in Vienna. After World War I, the region of Galicia which included Drohobycz became a Polish territory. In the postwar period, Schulz came to teach drawing in a Polish gymnasium, from 1924 to 1941. His employment kept him in his hometown, although he disliked his profession as a schoolteacher, apparently maintaining it only because it was his sole means of income.
The author nurtured his extraordinary imagination in a swarm of identities and nationalities: a Jew who thought and wrote in Polish, was fluent in German, and immersed in Jewish culture though unfamiliar with the Yiddish language. Yet there was nothing cosmopolitan about him; his genius fed in solitude on specific local and ethnic sources. He preferred not to leave his provincial hometown, which over the course of his life belonged to four countries. His adult life was often perceived by outsiders as that of a hermit: uneventful and enclosed.
Schulz seems to have become a writer by chance, as he was discouraged by influential colleagues from publishing his first short stories. His aspirations were refreshed, however, when several letters that he wrote to a friend, in which he gave highly original accounts of his solitary life and the details of the lives of his fellow citizens, were brought to the attention of the novelist Zofia Nałkowska. She encouraged Schulz to have them published as short fiction, and The Cinnamon Shops (Sklepy Cynamonowe) was published in 1934; in English-speaking countries, it is most often referred to as The Street of Crocodiles, a title derived from one of the chapters. This novel-memoir was followed three years later by Sanatorium Under the Sign of the Hourglass (Sanatorium Pod Klepsydrą). The original publications were fully illustrated by Schulz himself; in later editions of his works, however, these illustrations are often left out or are poorly reproduced. He also helped his fiancée translate Franz Kafka's The Trial into Polish, in 1936. In 1938, he was awarded the Polish Academy of Literature's prestigious Golden Laurel award.
The outbreak of World War II in 1939 caught Schulz living in Drohobycz, which was occupied by the Soviet Union. There are reports that he worked on a novel called The Messiah, but no trace of this manuscript survived his death. Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union, as a Jew he was forced to live in the ghetto of Drohobycz, but he was temporarily protected by Felix Landau, a Gestapo officer who admired his drawings. During the last weeks of his life, Schulz painted a mural in Landau's home in Drohobycz, in the style with which he is identified. Shortly after completing the work, Schulz was bringing home a loaf of bread when he was shot and killed by a German officer, Karl Günther, a rival of his protector (Landau had killed Günther's "personal Jew," a dentist). Over the years his mural was covered with paint and forgotten.
Source: wikipedia.com
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October 10, 2022Brunu Šulcu
Krokodilska ulica bb
1942 Rajsko naselje
Dragi Bruno,
nismo prestali da sanjamo. Dajemo sve od sebe da sazremo za detinjstvo i ponovo osetimo svu njegovu punoću. Na svakom mestu i u svakom vremenu trudimo se da opazimo republiku snova: u sivilu margine, ludilu rata i beznađu siromaštva... Tu državu mladih i poezije nosimo neprimetno, kao nevidljivo sklonište od 'vučjeg stada'.
Dezavuišemo materijalno svim svojim bićem, a Pana, u zapuštenoj bašti iza drugog dvorišta nećemo uznemiravati. Nismo zaboravili mitsko, kako kolektivno, tako i ono tanano, pojedinačno koje nas stavlja iznad statistike. Nadamo se da tvoja crna kočija sa lampionima svakodnevno klizi po nebeskoj kaldrmi, lagano ponirući u sumrak.
S poštovanjem
Tvoji čitaoci
Krokodilska ulica bb
1942 Rajsko naselje
Dragi Bruno,
nismo prestali da sanjamo. Dajemo sve od sebe da sazremo za detinjstvo i ponovo osetimo svu njegovu punoću. Na svakom mestu i u svakom vremenu trudimo se da opazimo republiku snova: u sivilu margine, ludilu rata i beznađu siromaštva... Tu državu mladih i poezije nosimo neprimetno, kao nevidljivo sklonište od 'vučjeg stada'.
Dezavuišemo materijalno svim svojim bićem, a Pana, u zapuštenoj bašti iza drugog dvorišta nećemo uznemiravati. Nismo zaboravili mitsko, kako kolektivno, tako i ono tanano, pojedinačno koje nas stavlja iznad statistike. Nadamo se da tvoja crna kočija sa lampionima svakodnevno klizi po nebeskoj kaldrmi, lagano ponirući u sumrak.
S poštovanjem
Tvoji čitaoci
March 30, 2019
An interesting introduction into Bruno Schulz's style!
October 12, 2016
Excellent quick intro to the literature of Schulz (and I mean it that it left me wanting to read more). It is clear that it won't be a light read but nevertheless poetic and engaging.
February 21, 2022
I feel that it just ended, maybe for failure of continued interest
Beautifully written. Unfortunately there just wasn't much to be said. I did have to look up two new words. That's uncommon at my age.
Beautifully written. Unfortunately there just wasn't much to be said. I did have to look up two new words. That's uncommon at my age.
April 2, 2023
Неколико кратких прича Бруна Шулца. Занимљиво, али превише снолико за мој укус.
May 2, 2023
Uwielbiam opowiadania Schulza, a to jest prawdopodobnie jednym z moich ulubionych. Język i słownictwo użyte przez autora tworzą wprost arcydzieło.
October 22, 2013
Dobar je Bruno, kao i svi Poljaci kad je reč o umetnosti (Gombrovič, Žulavski, Kiješlovski...) Dao bih mu pet zvezdica da nije protumačio Kafku na pomalo iskrivljen način. Takođe, zanimljivo je da u prvoj pročitanoj knjizi nakon Basarine Fame o Biciklima naletim na priču odakle je očigledno dobio inspiraciju za taj roman. Radi se o Šulcovoj kratkoj priči Kometa.
November 19, 2023
Reads like a fictionalized mission statement for Schulz's remarkable style and subject matter. In that sense, this would be a beautiful entry point for anyone new to his writing.
October 19, 2018
beautifully written but despite this not much of a plot: dream-like imagery with little substance to sustain me---I desired more(short stories rarely gratify me) written by dianne, not by maryann)
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews