Franciszek Bohomolec, S.J.,

Bogoria Coat of Arms Bogoria is a Polish coat of arms. It was used by several szlachta families in medieval Poland and later under the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, branches of the original medieval Bogoriowie family as well as families connected with the Clan ...

(29 January 1720 – 24 April 1784), writing pseudonymously as: ''Daniel Bobinson, Dzisiejkiewicz, F. B., F. B. S. J., Galantecki, J. U. P. Z., Jeden Zakonnik S. J., Jeden Zakonnik Societatis Jesu, Lubożoński, Ludziolubski, M. Z. S. W., Murmiłowski, N. N., N** N***, Ochotnicki, Odziański, Pokutnicki, Pośrzednicki, Poznajewski, Prożniak nie Tęskniący, Staroświat, Śmiałecki, Szkolnicki, Theosebes, Ucziwski'', was a Polish

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

teacher, writer, poet, satirist, social commentator, linguist, translator, dramatist and theatrical reformer who was one of the principal playwrights of the Polish Enlightenment. After the Suppression of the Society of Jesus, he continued his usual work and in addition became an editor, publisher and printer. After completing his studies for the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priesthood and ordination in

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urba ...

, he spent two years studying

rhetoric Rhetoric () is the art of persuasion, which along with grammar and logic (or dialectic), is one of the three ancient arts of discourse. Rhetoric aims to study the techniques writers or speakers utilize to inform, persuade, or motivate par ...

in Rome. Bohomolec returned to

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

to teach. As well as teaching poetry, he began to adapt the comedies of Carlo Goldoni and

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

for performance by his pupils. His early works satirized the ignorance and folly of the Polish aristocracy. His later plays reached a wider public. They included ''Małżeństwo z kalendarza'' ("Marriage by the Calendar", 1766), which ridicules ignorance and superstition and is usually considered his best work, and ''Czary'' ("Sorcery", 1775), which also satirises superstition. ''Pan dobry'' ("The Good Landowner", 1967) is a social commentary on the relationship between peasants and the gentry. Bohomolec was an habitué of King

Stanisław August Poniatowski Stanisław II August (born Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski; 17 January 1732 – 12 February 1798), known also by his regnal Latin name Stanislaus II Augustus, was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1764 to 1795, and the last monarc ...

's weekly Thursday Lunches. For the last 20 years of his life Bohomolec edited the magazine ''Monitor'', which greatly contributed to the Enlightenment in Poland. It was modelled on the famed English magazines '' The Tatler'' and ''

The Spectator ''The Spectator'' is a weekly British magazine on politics, culture, and current affairs. It was first published in July 1828, making it the oldest surviving weekly magazine in the world. It is owned by Frederick Barclay, who also owns ''Th ...

'' and was one of the first modern periodicals in Poland. His works in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

include a study of Polish

vernacular A vernacular or vernacular language is in contrast with a "standard language". It refers to the language or dialect that is spoken by people that are inhabiting a particular country or region. The vernacular is typically the native language, n ...

language. A famous anonymous poem of his time, entitled, ''"Kurdesz"'', (taken from the Turkish word for 'brother') and addressed to the mayor of Warsaw, is most often attributed to him.

References

External links

Selected works of Franciszek Bohomolec
in the Polona Library Collection * 1720 births 1784 deaths People from Warsaw Clan of Bogoria 18th-century Polish Jesuits 18th-century Polish–Lithuanian philosophers 18th-century Polish–Lithuanian poets 18th-century Polish–Lithuanian dramatists and playwrights Enlightenment philosophers Polish male poets Polish male dramatists and playwrights Polish male writers Polish philanthropists Polish political writers Polish satirists Polish theatre directors Burials at Powązki Cemetery {{poland-writer-stub