GAZDA Grzegorz

Born on 13 October 1943 in Srock near Piotrków Trybunalski; son of the civil servant Józef Gazda and Genowefa, née Grochulska. He and his family moved to Lodz in 1954. He attended the J. Lelewel Grammar School (No. 6) in Lodz from 1957, completing his advanced secondary education in 1961. He then studied Polish philology at the University of Lodz (UŁ), graduating in 1966 with a master's degree with film studies as his specialist subject. He was a member of the Polish Teachers' Union (ZNP) from 1962, the Polish Students' Union (ZSP) between 1963 and 1967 and the ruling Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR) from 1967 to 1981. In 1966/67 he was an intern at the Department of Literary Theory at UŁ. He made his debut in 1967 with the article Film poetycki. Wybrane zagadnienia genologiczne (Poetic Films: Selected genre-related issues), which was published in a journal of the Lodz Scientific Society, "Sprawozdania z Czynności i Posiedzeń Łódzkiego Towarzystwa Naukowego" (no. 8). From 1967 to 1969 he was on the doctoral programme at the Institute of Literary Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IBL PAN). In 1969, he was employed at the Department of Literary Theory at the Chair of Literary Theory at UŁ as a senior assistant. Between 1970 and 1995 he was secretary of the Commission for Slavic Poetics and Stylistics at the International Committee of Slavists (MKS). In 1972, he defended his doctoral thesis Futuryzm w Polsce na tle ówczesnych tendencji literackich (Futurism in Poland in the Context of Contemporary Literary Trends) at IBL where he was supervised by Prof. Stefania Skwarczyńska. He was then appointed lecturer at UŁ. He left for France in 1974, working as a lecturer in Polish language and literature until 1976 at Institut d’Etudes Slaves at the Université de Caen. After returning to Poland, he was deputy director of the Instiute of Literature, Theatre and Film at UŁ between 1978 and 1981. In his research he focused on literary theory, genre studies and comparative literature. He joined the Polish Writers' Union (ZLP) in 1979. The same year he started collaborating with the weekly "Odgłosy", where he published many articles, reviews and columns (likewise using the by-lines G.G., (GRZ), GRZG, (GRZG), (GRZG.), (GRZEG.), Wit Zakrota). Between 1984 and 1987 he was literary director of this periodical. From 1983 he served on the editorial board of the volumes "Folia Artium et Litterarum" (which was known as "Folia Scientiarum Artium et Librorum" until 1997) that were published as part of the series Acta Universitatis Lodziensis. He served as editor-in-chief between 1997 and 2010. He was awarded a habilitation degree in 1986 for his book Awangarda — nowoczesność i tradycja (z teorii i historii europejskich kierunków literackich pierwszych dziesięcioleci XX wieku) – (The Avant-Garde: Modernity and tradition. On the theory and history of European literary trends in the early decades of the twentieth century). He was subsequently appointed senior lecturer at UŁ. He was appointed to the Council of the Faculty of Philology at UŁ and to the Lodz Scientific Society (Łódzkie Towarzystwo Naukowe) in 1987, when he also received the Honorary Award of the City of Lodz and the Prize of the Minister of Science and Higher Education (Third Class) for his significant and creative achievements. Between 1987 and 1991 he was head of the Department of Film Studies at the Institute of Literary Theory, Theatre and Film, while also serving as prorector of the Faculty of Philology at UŁ. In 1990 he was appointed associate professor at UŁ. Between 1991 and 1994 he was co-editor of the bimonthly "Film na Świecie", where he published articles and translations from the French (likewise using the alias Witold Zakrota. In 1993 he was appointed head of the Department of Literary Theory at UŁ, which in 2002 became the Chair of Literary Theory. From 1995 to 2003 he a professor holding the Chair of Literature at the now defunct private university specializing in humanities and education, Mazowiecka Wyższa Szkoł Humanistyczno-Pedagogiczna in Łowicz. Between 1997 and 2012 he also held the Chair of Literary Theory, Theatre and Film at UŁ (which from 2002 was the Chair of Literary Theory, Theatre and Audovisual Arts, becoming the Chair of Literary Theory in 2011). From 1997 to 2012 he was editor of the Acta Universitatis Lodziensis series Folia Scientiae Artium et Litterarum. In 2000 he was awarded the prize of the monthly "Literatura na Świecie" for lexicography and comparative literature, while he was also nominated for the Jan Długosz Prize for his "significant achievements in the humanities". In 2002 he was made state-appointed professor, serving on the UŁ Senate until 2012. In 2003 he was appointed to the Scientific Council of IBL PAN and to the Committee on Literary Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences. In 2004 he was appointed full professor at UŁ and made a member of the Committee on Cultural Studies at PAN and of the Society of the Institute of Tolerance (Stowarzyszenia Instytut Tolerancji). The same year he began collaborating with the journal "Midrasz". Between 2005 and 2014 he was head of the Centre for Jewish Language and Culture at the Institute of Contemporary Culture at UŁ. Between 2007 and 2010 he was a member of the Central Commission for Academic Degrees and Titles in Humanities and Social Sciences Section I (Centralna Komisja do Spraw Stopni i Tytułów Naukowych Sekcji I Nauk Humanistycznych). He was also appointed to the Commission for Slavic Poetics and Stylistics and the Commission for Comparative Studies at the International Committee of Slavists, the Commission for Culture and Art at the Lodz section of PAN, and to the Polish Association of Cultural Studies. He was a member of the editorial board of the international biannual journal "Zagadnienia Rodzajów Literackich/Les Problèmes des genres littéraires", serving as editor-in-chief between 1997 and 2010 and then on the Editorial Council. He also served on the editorial boards of journals "Slavica Litteraria", "Novaja Rusistika" and the biannual "Proudy", all published by the Faculty of Slavonic Studies at the University of Brno. He gave lectures at universities in Prague, Brno, Banská Bystrica, Nitra, Stockholm and Viterbo. He retired in 2014. He won the Prize of the Minister of Higher Education in 1974, 1987 and 2000, while he also received the UŁ Rector's Prize on many occasions, including in 2014 when he was given a lifetime achievement award for his achievements in research, teaching and administration. He received the Gold Cross of Merit in 1989, the Medal of the Commission of National Education in 1991, the Medal of the UŁ Senate in 1994 for Service to Society and Science, the UŁ 50th Anniversary Medal in 1998, the Medal for Outstanding Service to the Polish Teachers' Union (ZNP) in 2005, the Gold Long Service Medal in 2008, the Lodz Scientific Society Medal in 2010, and the Universitatis Lodziensis Merentibus Medal in 2010.

He married the pedagogue Irena Grudniewska in 1969. They have two sons, Michał (b. 1972) and Tomasz (b. 1977). He lives in Lodz.