Per leggere (e capire) Akropolis

The introduction aims to illustrate the extremely rich world of symbols created by Wyspianski in his play Akropolis (1904), whose action is located in Cracow, in the Wawel cathedral, but mixes elements stemming from different cultures, though all inspired by artworks contained in the cathedral. The peculiar syncretism – both Polish-Greek and christian-pagan – and implicit references to the Romantic thinking paradigm are discussed and their possible meanings are proposed. The complex structure of the play - both chiastic-specular and linear-progressive - is detected and explained. The play is seen as an endeavour of reforming Polish culture by assuming all its components in an integrated and vitalistic perspective. This does not prevent the play from presenting a universal accent, calling for an extranational interprepretation