FROM THE HISTORY OF THE MOTIVES OF LABIRYNTH, FOREST, AND DESERT IN RENAISSANCE AND BAROQUE POETRY (Z dziejów motywów labiryntu, lasu i pustyni w renesansowej i barokowej poezji)

The motives of labirynth, forest, and desert are present in a number of old Polish literature texts: in 'The Chronicle' of Gallus Anonymous, in Jan Kochanowski's literary works, and in baroque poetry in which woods and forested places come into view in dreams and desires of desperate and embittered characters (Chelchowski). The poem 'Willaneczka' tells about love that comes true outside the then social norms, similar in this respect to that of 17th century French libertine poetry, happy and sensuous, and perhaps also looking for a shelter, a haven. The topos of the four scourges of court, i.e. jealousy, obloquy, intrigue, and unctuousness is voiced in somewhat later composed Elzbieta Druzbacka's 'Praise of Forests (...)' as well as in literary pieces by Waclaw Potocki, and Stanislaw Herakliusz Lubomirski. In Polish baroque poetry forests are seen as 'holy', while wild and secluded areas as happy, in time, however, especially in medieval tradition, they become horrible places (locus horridus), similar to the desert, which in their metaphorical functions prove to have positive meanings. Later, e.g. in Druzbacka's poetry, a garden labirynth also becomes a pleasant place and evokes neither negative associations nor has weighty emotional connotations.