/

Letter from Władysław Tatarkiewicz written 15.02.1937

EDITORIAL BOARD,                                                    Warsaw, 15/2/1937
PHILOSOPHICAL REVIEW                                                      BODUENA 6

 

Dear Honoured Colleague,

Today I finally received the English translation of my dissertation, transcribed and ready to be sent. I’ll send it tomorrow, after checking one more quotation. Thus the delay is ultimately not so great; I don’t suppose that the other authors sent their papers much sooner. At least the translation should be good. I checked it thoroughly myself and discussed it with the translator (Mr Adam Truszkowski), so that its fidelity and philosophical terminology are certain, whereas for style, I submitted samples to the very demanding consul, Savery, who ruled that it was the style ‘of an educated Englishman’, and distinguishes itself favourably from those translations that are generally produced in Poland. So perhaps linguistic corrections are not necessary; nevertheless, a proof-reader-philologist, who’ll check numerous Greek quotes, would be useful (following submission); maybe there’s someone like that in Lviv, otherwise I’ll find one in Warsaw.
Mr Truszkowski has promised to help me with the proofs (this is important because, inter alia, the English have special customs, especially when translating expressions with which Polish typesetters aren’t familiar). Nevertheless, I’d like to correct the proofs myself. My schedule looks like this, more or less: until 15/3, I’m in Warsaw, then I’m going to Yugoslavia, where I’m supposed to have a couple of lectures, for a month; frankly, during the trip it’d be hard to do a good job on proofs.
I’ll attach a few indications to the text for the typesetter. The English have certain printing conventions that need to be honoured, because otherwise English readers will consider the thing to have been barbarously printed (the article in the first volume of Studies [Studia Philosophica] didn’t fully honour these conventions).

By the way, I’d like to touch on yet another matter which I think concerns both of us in equal measure. What I have in mind is the propaedeutic programme in the upper high schools. The Ministry furnished me with a programme project, which unfortunately deviates greatly from the one which was elaborated in Lviv and which Prof. Twardowski delivered as long ago as September. Now simply everything that actually pertains to philosophy has been eliminated; only logic and psychology remain. I myself studied in a Russian school according to a similar programme, and I know that it can only discourage students from studying philosophy, and in any case will not direct them according to their philosophical needs and interests. This programme is to be sent to universities in the nearest future for opinions. I’m not going to conceal my views; nor do I suppose I’ll be alone in this. Do you already have this project? I’m inordinately curious as to what you think of it.

                I enclose a cordial handshake

                                                        Wtatarkiewicz