Literary Outlooks on Women Implicated in the Greek Revolution: The Case of Józef Dunin-Borkowski’s Philhellenic Poems

Abstract

This article analyses the philhellenic poems of Polish romantic poet Józef Dunin-
Borkowski with the focus on gender representation. It discusses the four roles envisaged
by Dunin-Borkowski for women: as war casualties, soldiers’ lovers, sexual slaves of the
enemy and heroines taking part in armed combat. It argues that Dunin-Borkowski casts
a vision of femininity that is different from the parlour or domestic model, subordinated
to the cause of the homeland’s freedom. The Greek woman in his oeuvre is often an
autonomous individual, actively involved in public affairs, while Greece is presented as an
Enlightenment utopia, a project of universal emancipation and also of women’s freedom.
Therefore, Dunin-Borkowski’s poems can be read as an attempt to formulate a modern
image of emancipation in the contexts of debates on democracy, slavery and women’s
liberation.