History, Silence and Discourse

Olga Tokarczuk

Polish writer Olga Tokarczuk received the Nobel prize for literature last night. Her acceptance speech was not broadcast live by the state media in her home country. Here's a fragment:

'Something that happens and is not told ceases to exist and dies. Not only historians, but also (and perhaps above all) all sorts of politicians and tyrants know this. Whoever has and tells the story rules' [Olga Tokarczuk, December 7, 2019]*

Certainly not the first time that this has been said, but the silence of part of the media is so eloquent.

*"Coś, co się wydarza, a nie zostaje opowiedziane, przestaje istnieć i umiera. Wiedzą o tym bardzo dobrze nie tylko historycy, ale także (a może przede wszystkim) wszelkiej maści politycy i tyrani. Ten, kto ma i snuje opowieść – rządzi."