„Wedle ideału Klaudynek…”. Wizerunek dziewiętnastowiecznej Polki w piśmiennictwie historycznym Antoniny Machczyńskiej

Abstract

The subject of this article is concerned with the characteristics of the social activity of Antonina Machczyńska (1832[37]–1919), a Lviv social and educational activist, for women’s equal rights at the turn of the19th and 20th centuries. Machczyńska’s memoirs from 1860–1919, stored in the Warsaw and Lviv collections, as well as her journalistic and historical works were analyzed. Particular attention was focused on the analysis of the well-known historical sketch written by her for the Women’s Work Exhibition in Prague in 1912, entitled: “Polish Woman”, which she devoted entirely to discussing the history of Polish women from the earliest times to the present. Referring to the emancipatory aspirations of Polish women and her own life experiences, Machczyńska presented a specific image of 19th century women, focused on the motif of Klaudines – women active in the Klaudyna (née Działyńska) Potocka Society.