Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Polish Culture and Society

Our lecture from Marta Shaw on Polish Culture and Society was one of the most interesting lectures.  It was a great way to start our trip and introduced us to some of the topics we would be learning more about later on.  The speaker made it very enjoyable.  You could just feel how much she loved the topics she was discussing.



One of my favorite things to learn about was Jadwiga Andegawenska.  She was a female King of Poland and was passionate about education.  She was actually the founder of Jagiellonian University, the university in Poland where our lectures are taking place.  The Jagiellonian dynasty started by her and her husband ruled until the 1500s.  Jadwiga was also a very giving person and was declared a saint after her death.



Another interesting thing that was discussed was the role of women in Polish culture and society.  The men were often out fighting wars so the women were left to do everything else.  Because of this, Polish women are extremely hard-working.  This is true even today.
Another aspect of Polish culture and society that is true today is a sense of social hierarchy.  This has been a part of Polish society for a long time and greatly differs from the way things are in the United States.


One of the most unique things about Poland’s history is that they were invaded by their neighboring countries so there was no Poland on the map for 123 years.  It was only after the first world war that Poland resurfaced.  Because of this, I find it extremely impressive that Polish culture and society still exist today.

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