JOHN PAUL II'S 'ROMAN TRIPTYCH' - READING THE MANUSCRIPT

This essay attempts to offer a reading of John Paul II's last poem on the basis of the original manuscript, ie. the three pages photocopied and reproduced in the Cracow edition of 'The Roman Triptych' (2006). The text contains sufficient graphological and philological evidence pointing to the deteriorating condition of the ailing author: clearly both the writing and the composing of the poem were connected with considerable effort. Our analyses provide several insights into the process of articulation of the poem's main idea, the poet's work with his medium and even the way he adjusted the design. They also tend to corroborate the thesis that the poem can be treated as John Paul II's response to the sensation-mongering media speculating about his health and pressing for his resignation. Moreover, our analyses bring to light a whole range of ill-advised editorial decisions in the 2006 edition, ie. the treatment of the portions of the text that were crossed out in the manuscript, unjustified intrusions into the rhythm of the poem, and inconsistencies in the editorial notes (especially with regard to such intercontextual signals as quotations, for example those from St Paul's Epistles).