Artykuł wycofany [Retracted article]: Brama triumfalna polskiej opowieści. Symboliczna rekonstrukcja mostu nad Chłodną wobec kryzysu dominującej polskiej narracji o Zagładzie [A Triumphant Gate of the Polish Narrative: The Symbolic Reconstruction of the Bridge over Chłodna Street in Warsaw vis-à-vis the Crisis of the Dominant Polish Holocaust Narrative]

This is a retracted article, whose corrected version, bearing the same title, is available under the DOI: https://doi.org/10.11649/slh.2417. The correction was introduced at the request of the Author.A Triumphant Gate of the Polish Narrative: The Symbolic Reconstruction of the Bridge over Chłodna Street in Warsaw vis-à-vis the Crisis of the Dominant Polish Holocaust NarrativeThe article is a study of the symbolic topography of Warsaw’s Chłodna Street. In 1940–1942 Chłodna Street was an “Aryan” border strip, dividing the Small and Large Ghettos. For the past quarter of century, the symbolic landmark dominating within this space have been the subsequent commemorations of the Ghetto’s wooden footbridge that existed here between January and August 1942. These commemorative artefacts evolved from a counter-commemoration (1996), through a commemoration with the use of painting (2007) and photography (2008), to a symbolic reconstruction of the bridge (2011). The analysis of this dynamics, from representation of an object to its materialization, is complemented by a reconstruction of the patterns and stakes of narratives that make up the subsequent layers of the Chłodna Street narrative palimpsest. An important context of the analysis, apart from the history of the site, is the fact that today, the means of control over the space of the former Ghetto are in exclusive possession of the non-Jewish majority.A breaking point in the commemoration process was Roman Polański’s film The Pianist (2002). The bridge over Chłodna was reconstructed “one to one” – in Warsaw but outside the space of the former Warsaw Ghetto. The film was shot in the midst of a nationwide debate taking place in Poland over Jan Tomasz Gross’s book Neighbors (2000). The debate concerned the Poles’ participation in the Holocaust and the socio-cultural determinants of their attitudes and behaviors. Within the Polish dominant culture, the narrative shock was so immense that a return to the old Polish tale of heroism and martyrdom seemed impossible. ...