Leon Borowski Polish philologist, historian and literary theorist; Date of Birth: 27.05.1784 Country: Lithuania

Biography of Leon Borovski

Leon Borovski was a Polish philologist, historian, and literary theorist. He was born in Pinski and completed his gymnasium education in Postavy. Borovski began working as a secretary at Vilnius University in 1801, while also studying there. In 1803, he obtained a degree in philosophy. He later worked as a teacher in gymnasiums in Swislocz and Vilnius.

In 1814, after the death of Professor Eusebius Slovak, Borovski started teaching rhetoric, poetry, and philosophical grammar. He obtained a master's degree in philosophy in 1816. Borovski became an extraordinary professor in 1821 and an ordinary professor in 1823. He was known for his brilliant lectures and was the first to introduce the analysis of literature in his seminars. Borovski had a significant influence on Adam Mickiewicz, being one of the first supporters of his poetry. Other future writers, such as Simonas Daukantas and Simonas Stanevicius, also attended his lectures.

When Vilnius University closed in 1832, Borovski was appointed as a professor of homiletics at the Roman Catholic Vilnius Spiritual Academy in 1833. He taught homiletics and Polish literature there until 1842 when the academy was moved from Vilnius to St. Petersburg. Borovski also served as a censor of Polish publications for a long time. He passed away in Vilnius in 1846 and was buried in the Bernardine Cemetery. A tablet with a text in Polish, stating that Borovski was the first to recognize Mickiewicz as a national genius and the one who shaped the most outstanding Polish poets and writers of the 19th century, was placed on the back side of his gravestone in 1900. The monument is also adorned with a poetic epitaph by Maria Konopnicka.

Borovski, who was influenced by the literary tastes of the 18th century, is considered one of the founders of Romanticism in Polish literature. He attempted to harmonize it with classicism. Borovski was well-versed in the works of classical literature and translated from Latin, French, and English into Polish. Among his translations are Moliere's comedies "The Miser" and "The Learned Women," as well as fragments of works by Shakespeare, Milton, and Byron. He also left behind a manuscript translation of "Don Quixote" from the original Spanish. Borovski published Ignacy Krasicki's poem "Monachomachia" with his scholarly comments.

From 1815 to 1826, he was a contributor to the journal "Dziennik Wileński" (Vilnius Journal), where one of his major works, "Uwagi nad poezją i wymową pod względem ich podobieństwa i różnicy" (Remarks on Poetry and Rhetoric in Terms of their Similarities and Differences), was initially published. Borovski also authored several works on pedagogy and a biography of Eusebius Slovak, as well as "Uwagi nad poezją i wymową" (Remarks on Poetry and Rhetoric, 1820), "Retoryka" (Rhetoric, 1824), and "O poznawaniu zdolności umysłowych w młodzieży" (On Recognizing Intellectual Abilities in Youth, 1826).