WITTLIN Józef

Born on 17 August 1896 in the Dmytrów (Ukrainian: Dmytriv) estate near Radziechów (Ukrainian: Radechiv) in Austrian-ruled Galicia; son of Karol Wittlin (who died in 1912 and had leased the estate) and Elżbieta, née Rosenfeld (who died in 1903). Between 1906 and 1914, he attended the Tadeusz Kościuszko Classical Grammar School No. VII in Lwow (Ukrainian: Lviv). He made his debut in 1912 with a poem written for the hundredth anniversary of the birth of Zygmunt Krasiński. Titled Prolog, it appeared in the Lviv-based youth periodical "Wici". From 1913, he contributed to the daily "Słowo Polskie". Following the outbreak of World War I in August 1914, he signed up for the Polish Eastern Legion, which was disbanded in September of the same year as a result of recruits collectively refusing to give the oath that was obligatory in the Austrian army. He subsequently left for Vienna. During this period, he began work on a translation of Homer's Odyssey, which appeared in 1924 (with amended versions published in 1935 and 1957). He completed his advanced secondary education in 1915 and started a degree in German philology, Romance philology and the history of art at the University of Vienna. During this time, he became acquainted with Joseph Roth and Rainer Maria Rilke. He was conscripted to the Austrian army in 1916, serving in the 21st Viennese Infantry Battalion, where he also received retraining. For using Polish during active duty, he was punished by being delegated to Austrian-occupied Krasnik. Soon afterwards, he became ill with scarlet fever. Following a long period of recovery, served as a translator in a camp for Italian prisoners of war. In September 1918, he was discharged from the military owing to ill health and returned to Lwow, where he continued his studies, taking a degree in Polish philology and philosophy at the city's Jan Kazimierz University. He had to abandon his studies soon afterwards following the Ukrainian capture of the city. Between 1919 and 1921, he taught Polish language and literature at middle schools in Lwow. In 1919/20, he was associated with the group of expressionists based around the Poznan-based weekly "Zdrój". He later collaborated informally with the Skamander poetry group, likewise publishing in its eponymous periodical (1920-22, 1925-28, and 1935-36). He moved to Lodz in 1921, where he was literary director of the Municipal (Miejski) Theatre during the 1922/23 season. He was also a lecturer at theatre's Drama School. During this period, he also wrote theatre reviews for the daily "Głos Polski". He married Halina Handelsman, who held a doctorate in Polish philology, in 1924. They had a daughter, Elżbieta (b. 1932), who became a painter and set designer (married name: Lipton). He later moved to Bolesławów, near Lodz. He was a regular contributor to the literary periodical "Wiadomości Literackie" (1924-39). In 1925/26, he was in Italy on a government scholarship. He visited various places, including Assisi, where he worked on a book about St Francis. He moved to Warsaw in 1927. Between 1929 and 1932, he travelled to France, where he collected material for his novel Sól ziemi (English translation: The Salt of the Earth). In June 1932, he visited Yugoslavia. In 1938, he was awarded the Golden Laurel of the Polish Academy of Literature in recognition of his outstanding literary achievements. Owing to his pacifist views, the Polish Ministry of Military Affairs issued a request in February 1939 for him to be interned in the Bereza Kartuska prison for alleged anti-state activities. His was given a suspended sentence. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize the same year. In July 1939, he travelled to France with Tymon Terlecki. They encountered the outbreak of World War II in Abbaye de Royaumont. Wittlin published several articles in the Paris- and later London-based periodical "Wiadomości Polskie" (1940-42). In February 1940, he brought his wife and daughter to Paris. Following the surrender of France, he and his family made their way to Portugal, travelling from there to the United States in 1941. They settled in New York. He collaborated with the literary weekly "Tygodniowy Serwis Literacki Koła Pisarzy z Polski”, which was renamed "Tygodniowy Przegląd Literacki Koła Pisarzy z Polski" (1941-42) and based in New York. From January until September 1943, he was co-editor of its successor, "Tygodnik Polski", where in 1944 he also published a prose piece. He also contributed to the New York-based "Robotnik Polski" (1941-42). In subsequent years, he contributed regularly to the London-based "Wiadomości" (until 1969; including numerous translations of English-language, Spanish-language, German-language and Italian poetry), the Paris-based "Kultura" (until 1974; including essays, studies and short texts about literature), the New York-based "Tematy" (intermittently 1962-69), and the Munich-based "Na Antenie" (1963-67). From 1952, he collaborated with the Polish Section of Radio Free Europe and with US-based periodicals. He was a lifetime member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. He was involved in the activities of the European PEN in America and also co-founded the US-American section of the PEN Club Center for Writers in Exile. He was awarded the prize of the Union of Polish Writers Abroad in 1957 in recognition of his literary works, while in 1966 he received the prize of the New York-based Alfred Jurzykowski foundation. In 1971, he was made a corresponding member of the German Academy for Language and Literature (Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung) in Darmstadt. He died on 28 February 1976 in New York, where he is buried at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery.