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Originally produced in: Polska
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Questionnaire

I. Excerpt from the article “Political emigrants in Post-Vienna Europe”.

1. Select the correct sentence(s) from the list below.
a. Political emigrants met with warm reception and assistance from local governments in all European countries.
b. Not in all European countries emigrants could freely undertake political activities.
c. The financial situation of emigrants was good due to compensations which were paid by the Russian government for their lost property in the country.
d. Emigrants created many organizations and political parties, which referred to different ideologies, from conservatism to socialism.

2. Specify the social groups that were forced to emigrate from their native countries in the nineteenth century:
a. Politicians engaged in patriotic activity which was considered illegal.
b. Soldiers taking part in the fight against the armed forces of legal authorities.
c. People accused of economic crimes.
d. People propagating views dangerous to the country from the point of view of the government.


II. Directions of Polish emigration in the nineteenth century.

1. From the countries listed below, select those which were targets of Polish emigrants in the nineteenth century:
a. France.
b. Denmark.
c. Habsburg Monarchy.
d. Spain.
e. England.
f. Switzerland.

2. From the countries that did not adopt Polish emigrants one can mention:
a. Countries under the rule of the Habsburgs (Austrian Empire, the Duchies of northern Italy) due to their extremely conservative nature and policy of implementing the objectives of the Holy Alliance.
b. Switzerland – because of the mountainous landscape and the difficulty of travelling within that country.
c. Germany – due to the contribution of the state to the Holy Alliance and partitions of Poland.
d. The United States – because of too high cost of travel.


III. Drawing “Polish emigrants 1830”, author unknown.

1. The events that gained sympathies among some European countries for the Poles and created warm reception in the West of the continent are:
a. The July Revolution in France.
b. The wave of famine which swept through Europe in 1930.
c. Belgian Revolution August-September 1830.
d. The Spanish national liberation war with Napoleon's France.

2. Poles were friendly greeted by societies in Western Europe because:
a. Polish soldiers were considered particularly handsome.
b. Many Europeans sympathised with objectives of the Polish fight – freedom and democracy.
c. Theuneven but heroic struggle of the weaker Polish nation with powerful state of Russian tsars won them supporters.


IV. Emigrants’ artistic activities in service of politics.

1. Frederic Chopin became a political exile and asked for asylum in France because (choose one):
a. He participated in the November Uprising, for which he was sentenced to exile.
b. He left Poland shortly before the outbreak of the uprising. But he could not come back because of repression imposed by the Russian government.
c. Living and working in France were associated with greater prestige for an artist.

2. Amongthe musical forms used by Chopin, choose those of typical Polish character which caused that this composer's music was of patriotic and national character:
a. Mazurkas.
b. Sonata.
c. Polonaises.
d. Musical improvisation.
e. Preludes.


Questions of synthesis

1. Write an essay (200-300 words) about the importance of artistic creation of a patriotic character for nations without their own land. Give historical examples and those which refer to the present times.
2. Prepare a report on the contemporary national minority in Europe that struggles for political emancipation. Include the following aspects of the problem: a. Reasons for separatism, b. Means of fighting, c. The importance of political activity and propaganda carried out in the international arena for this fight.

Questions of synthesis

1. Write an essay (200-300 words) about the importance of artistic creation of a patriotic character for nations without their own land. Give historical examples and those which refer to the present times.

Highlights:

  • The role of patriotic art in shaping the national consciousness.
  • The role of art and public activities in creating and highlighting political and social issues.
  • Examples: the importance of maintaining a hermetic nature of the art and tradition in preserving the individual character of the Jewish people living in the Diaspora.

2. Prepare a report on the contemporary national minority in Europe that struggles for political emancipation. Include the following aspects of the problem: a. Reasons for separatism, b. Means of fighting, c. The importance of political activity and propaganda carried out in the international arena for this fight.

Highlights:

  • Identification of historical origins of a selected national minority and its current political and social situation.
  • Discussion on arguments that justify striving for independence of the minority.
  • Describe the methods, which they used in the struggle for national and political freedom.
  • A brief characterization of the European public attitude to this issue (based on newspaper or Internet articles, postings on forums, etc.).

Examples of separatisms which can be used by students: the problem of Ulster, Chechnya, Spain (Catalonia, Galicia, Basque Country).