“I write for intelligent people, not idiots,” says Polish Nobel laureate Tokarczuk

Polish writer Olga Tokarczuk, winner of the 2018 Nobel Prize in Literature, has stirred controversy after saying that she writes her books “for intelligent people” and that “literature is not for idiots”.

“I never expected everyone to read and I never expected my books to end up being owned by every Tom, Dick and Harry,” said Tokarczuk during a literary festival, using the Polish term “pod strzechy”, which literally translates as “under a thatched roof”, suggesting among the common people.

“I don’t want them to end up being owned by every Tom, Dick and Harry at all,” she continued. “Literature is not for idiots. In order to read books, you need to have a certain competence, a certain sensitivity, a certain understanding of culture.”

“I don’t believe that a reader will come along who knows absolutely nothing and will suddenly immerse themselves in some literature,” added Tokarczuk. “I write my books for intelligent people, who think, who feel, who have some sensitivity. I believe that my readers are similar to me.”

Her remarks, made at the Mountains of Literature Festival that is organised by Tokarczuk’s foundation, earned the writer accusations of classism and snobbery, with journalists, politicians and linguists addressing the comments and debating the place of literature in society.

“Tokarczuk doesn’t want her books to end up being owned by every Tom, Dick and Harry because she ‘doesn’t write for idiots’. This is an approach to people that has always frustrated me,” tweeted activist and journalist Maja Staśko. “Under thatched roofs live people who don’t think or feel? Not only is that untrue, it’s also deeply contemptuous.”

“The literary community has been submerged in classism for years, with their sense of superiority, misunderstanding and self-indulgence. Their contempt for the people compensates for their small earnings in literature,” she added.

Jagoda Ratajczak, a linguist and author of a book on how language affects the human mind, wrote on her Facebook page that she wants her books to be read by average people. “Literature is not for a mutual adoration circle – it is for opening eyes, heads, bridging divisions, not creating them,” she said.

By contrast, radio and television journalist Karolina Korwin-Piotrowska sided with Tokarczuk, writing on Instagram that not all books are for all readers.

“Yes, some books are not for idiots. All right. If that’s classism, well, shoot me an email. But, please, read the quotes in context. Think,” Korwin-Piotrowska said.

 

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Although Tokarczuk enjoys great popularity in her home country, with huge queues of fans forming to meet her after her Nobel success, she has also often stirred controversy.

In particular, the author, who voices support for liberal causes, has drawn criticism from conservatives. Last year, a social media campaign encouraged people who owned Tokarczuk books to send them back to her after she appeared to liken Poland to Belarus and criticised the government’s anti-LGBT campaign.

Note: Olga Tokarczuk is a member of Notes from Poland’s advisory board.

Main image credit: Bogdan Popescu/Flickr (under CC BY-NC 2.0)

Alicja Ptak

Alicja Ptak is senior editor at Notes from Poland and a multimedia journalist. She previously worked for Reuters.