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Article published In: Target
Vol. 37:3 (2025) ► pp.333–359

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Mechanisms of cultural transfer between Poland and the Soviet Union

The dispute over the Russian version of the monthly Polska in the early post-Stalin period

ORCiD logo with link | University of Wrocław
ORCiD logo with link | University of Wrocław
Published online: 28 July 2025
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/target.23180.sol
Abstract
This article analyses specific instances of cultural transfer between Poland and the Soviet Union during the early post-Stalin era. It investigates the magazine Polska, published in several languages, as a part of the Polish People’s Republic’s foreign cultural policy. Employing the framework of cultural transfer theory, this case study examines key aspects: the content disseminated within the target system via translations of the monthly Polska; the responses generated by this transferred product and the subsequent impact of its reception back in the source system. While acknowledging the clear centre-periphery dynamics, the most influential factors in this bilateral cultural exchange were the unpredictable nature of the Thaw in the Soviet Union and the pivotal role of cultural intermediaries in determining the transferred products’ content and form.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Stages of the study
  • 3.Source and target cultures: General characteristics of the centre–periphery relationship between Poland and the USSR
  • 4.The monthly magazine Polska as a product designed for cultural transfer under the foreign policy of the Polish People’s Republic
  • 5.Contents of the monthly Polska in 1956: Texts, ideas, aesthetic trends
  • 6.Translators and translations in the monthly Polska
  • 7.Specificities of the target system: The Thaw in the press of the Soviet Union
  • 8.The dispute over the content of the magazine Polska
  • 9.The monthly Polska affair in the context of Polish–Soviet diplomatic relations
  • 10.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
  • Archival materials
  • Corpus of analysed texts
References (54)
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