| I must conclude from my experience of the Norman Davies' lecture, the other evening, where he expressed a potted history of Poland in recent times, that he planned to 'fence sit' on the right side and avoid any substantial revelations for the 'standing audience' in attendance. Instead, as you might expect, a presentation based in significant enquiry, examining the strengths & weaknesses equally, of each political party in Poland, he offered a simple and mostly descriptive view which was politically biased and quite judgmental in its approach which unabashedly declared his sympathies for the current governing party.
The present government, for which Prof. Davies, is a respected adviser to the current Polish Premier, and clearly, has the Premier's confidence, which is steadfast even after his adviser, at the beginning of his first term of government, recommended that he should model Polish affairs on those of the Irish Republic, delivered at an unfortunately wrong moment in history - just before the Irish economy collapsed; an historical faux pas. I am of the opinion, that on this particular evening, the Professor exclusively propagated the current government's policies as righteous and by coincidence, just before the coming elections. To my shock, the professor even went as far as to express sympathy for a current aggressor - a local tzar. Local that is to Eastern Europe not Central Europe!
The Professor escaped from the need for any in-depth response, even with an imposed limitation on the possible number of questions, not giving any really satisfying answer to the few selected questioners. And when an ethnically Asian woman, clearly asked the Professor if he would define "Polishness", rather than honour her question, he directed the questioner, to find out the answer by reading his book, "Heart of Europe" - an excellent read by the way. And the question must be posed: For whom was this dot-point version of current Polish history meant? The professor must know the greater Polish diaspora knows only too well current Polish history; history present and past, and many people have read the professor's esteemed books, not once but over and over again, with the anticipation and yearning of an expatriate, hoping to learn the deeper implications of what's behind the daily news events of their homeland. Why was this "A Recent Polish History for Dummies"? Even so, many in the 'hot and bothered' audience after the lecture approached their illustrious friend for his signature on a copy of one of his books, which they would now treasure even more, after the personal touch of his pen. If the lecture was for non-Polish newcomers, like myself, then that is another story and I should have been grateful for this simple and brief introduction to modern Polish history.
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Also, as a dinky-di Aussie, invited by Polish friends, I had to ask myself whether the organisers were cruel torturers or just wanted to checkout the fitness and endurance of the large audience by having most people, bar a lucky few, standing without seats, in a hot and crowded room, for over an hour. Was this simply a bad organisational decision or the unusual Polish solution to an overly large number of excited respondees. It couldn't possibly be a politically motivated act , to disorient the enthusiasm and eager expectations of an audience, to get them to think exclusively about their aching legs and think only of getting away home via their comfy car seats before putting any questions they might have.
Why have such a mismatch between audience expectation and the content of a presentation?
Please accept this as an invitation for open discussion!
Best regards
Paul
Another opinion about Prof. Davies lecture
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