Since the fall of Poland’s state socialist regime in 1989, the archives of its police and security services have been under the responsibility of a government commission focused on prosecuting crimes against the Polish nation, now a part of the Institute of National Remembrance. Remigiusz Ryziński acknowledges the Institute for facilitating his work, while also challenging established Polish narratives of collective hardship under surveillance and oppression. With a background in gender studies, queer theory, and feminist thinking, Ryziński is part of a group of innovative Polish intellectuals exploring the experiences of individuals persecuted and marginalized due to their sexuality. He has written four books, three of which delve into the inner lives of LGBTQ+ communities throughout Poland’s turbulent twentieth century, examining how authoritarian regimes have viewed sexual nonconformity as a problem to be monitored, controlled, and eradicated since World War II.
Nominated for Poland’s prestigious Nike Award, and the first of his works to be translated into English, Foucault in Warsaw delves into a mystery surrounding its central figure, Michel Foucault, an influential social theorist and gay intellectual of the 20th century whose fascination with deviance and social control has inspired scholars and activists, including Ryziński. In 1958, while working on his doctoral thesis on psychiatry and the construction of mental illness, Foucault visited Warsaw for the first time and oversaw a French cultural institution established during the relaxation period after Stalinism. Less than a year later, Foucault abruptly left Poland for France, allegedly due to a romantic involvement with a younger, unnamed Polish man who was rumored to be an informant for the secret police.
As Ryziński delves into the identity of this individual and the circumstances of Foucault’s departure, his narrative expands into a captivating exploration of Warsaw as a hub of gay culture in the 1950s and 1960s. His work shines brightest as a collective portrayal of gay life in Warsaw, reconstructing the community’s diverse stories through the spaces, objects, and encounters that connected them. He depicts a gritty, clandestine “underground” scene where public spaces like parks, restrooms, and transportation hubs served as meeting spots for potentially dangerous or fatal erotic encounters. Despite homosexuality not being officially prohibited, individuals frequented both the underground and more conventional settings like cafes, clubs, theaters, restaurants, and bathhouses, where artistic and intellectual elites mingled with younger companions and drag performers entertained.
Describing this era as a “tight-knit community,” as stated by those he interviewed, Ryziński adeptly captures how social and cultural diversity sustained an informal economy rooted in masculine desires, trading foreign currencies, rare goods, and high-end products. Foreigners like Foucault, with their wealth, charm, and connections, could attract a circle of admirers, using their resources to navigate the system. Ryziński recounts how Foucault, though not a heavy drinker, recognized the significance of alcohol in Polish social interactions, noting how cigarettes could facilitate various transactions. The author’s attention to the everyday interactions of his subjects, coupled with details on exchange rates, prices, ads, and headlines, adds a tangible quality to the story of differences, desires, and boundary-crossing.
Foucault’s impact on Ryziński’s reflections on state surveillance, which categorized gay and lesbian populations as abnormal and in need of study and monitoring, is evident. Ryziński echoes Foucault’s sentiments by suggesting that homosexuality in Poland only became visible after it was documented. The keepers of these records, including academics, doctors, and law enforcement officials, theorized on the sexual behaviors and psychological profiles of gay individuals, associating them with illicit activities like prostitution and pedophilia. The secret police, seeking compromising material, would use young informants to investigate prominent figures, a tactic that Foucault himself may have experienced. Surveillance loomed over gay life in Warsaw, influencing Foucault’s work on the confinement of the mentally ill as he felt the watchful eyes of authority on him like never before.
Easily accessible to readers interested in sexuality, social theory, or the Cold War era, Foucault in Warsaw compiles a collection of vivid, finely crafted stories that explore the book’s central enigmas through fragmented, non-linear narratives, drawing on archival documents, personal anecdotes, and oral histories from individuals who knew Foucault in Warsaw. Sean Gasper Bye’s translation further enriches the text, inviting a wider audience beyond academia to explore postwar Poland’s gay scene. As Ryziński reconstructs this partly elusive history, he invites readers into his dreamlike scenarios, filling gaps in the historical record with sensory descriptions of summer evenings scented with coffee, cigarettes, and marijuana, or imagining intimate dialogues between Foucault and his lover in a café adorned with rich imagery from a bygone era. By navigating the boundaries of known stories and crafting a narrative that blurs conventional perceptions, Ryziński offers a fresh perspective on the Cold War era and sheds new light on lives that transcended established norms to carve out spaces of fragile autonomy. In the quest to uncover Foucault’s time in Warsaw, Ryziński leads us on an unexpected journey to rediscover the city through Foucault’s lens.
