Professor at the Institute of Polish Culture at the University of Warsaw, head of the IPC Council (from 2020); member of the Scientific Council of the Discipline of Culture and Religious Studies (from 2019), member of the Rector’s Commission of the Centre for French Culture and Francophone Studies at the University of Warsaw, member of the Committee on Cultural Sciences of the Polish Academy of Sciences, professor at Sorbonne Université and director of the Centre de Civilisation Polonaise (2016-2019), director of the Institute of Polish Culture (2012-2016), head of the Department of Cultural History at IPC (2009-2013). Pawel Rodak is also a member of research group EUR’ORBEM (Cultures et sociétés d’Europe orientale, balkanique et médiane, Paris) and research group «Genèse et autobiographie» (l’Institut des textes & manuscrits modernes, École Normale Supérieure, Paris) ; member of the l’Association pour l’autobiographie et le patrimoine autobiographique (France) and International Auto/Biography Association (IABA Steering Committee) ; head of the Editorial Committee of the series ‘Communicare. History and Culture’; member of the Scientific Council of the Journal ‘Autobiography. Literature, Culture, Media’; member of the Board of the Jerzy Giedroyc Scientific Award; member of the Programme Council of the Festival of Science; member of the Council of the l’Institut Bibliothèque Polonaise de Paris; head of Programme Council of Centre of Community Archives. Pawel Rodak since 2000 cooperates with École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales in Paris (visiting professor 2005, 2013, 2025).
Research interests: history of modern Polish literature and culture of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries and anthropology of the word in culture (primarily the study of the practices of writing and printing, as well as the history of the book and the history of reading). In my research work, I have worked closely with French research groups for many years. I can consider my greatest achievement to be the introduction into the Polish humanities of a new understanding of the personal diary as a writing practice and an appreciation of the role of materiality in the analysis of autobiographical records.
Main publications:
Author’s books:
- Wizje kultury pokolenia wojennego [Visions of Culture in the War Generation] (2000);
- Pismo, książka, lektura. Rozmowy [Writing, book, lecture. Conversations with Jacques Le Goff, Roger Chartier, Jean Hébrard, Daniel Fabre, Philippe Lejeune] (2009);
- Między zapisem a literaturą. Dziennik polskiego pisarza w XX wieku (Żeromski, Nałkowska, Dąbrowska, Gombrowicz, Herling-Grudziński) [Between written practice of everyday life and literature. Polish writer’s diary in the 20th Century (Żeromski, Nałkowska, Dąbrowska, Gombrowicz, Herling-Grudziński)], (2011);
Editions:
- edition of Andrzej Trzebiński’s Pamiętnik [Diary], which was kept during the Second World War (2001);
- edition of the book with articles of Philippe Lejeune on diaries translated into Polish „Drogi zeszycie…”, „drogi ekranie…” O dziennikach osobistych [« Dear notebook… », « Dear screen…». About diaries] (2010);
- edition of the book with articles of Roger Chartier on history of the book and history of reading translated into Polish Czy książki wywołują rewolucje ? Szkice z historii książki, lektury i kultury piśmiennej [Do books make revolutions? On the history of books, reading and writing culture] (2019);
Editing and co-authoring of collective volumes:
- Antropologia pisma. Od teorii do praktyki [Anthropology of writing. From theory to practice], edited with Philippe Artières (2009);
- Kulturologia polska XX wieku, vol. 1-2 [Polish culturology of the 20th century, collective two volumes], edited with Grzegorz Godlewski, Andrzej Kołakowski, Joanna Kubicka, Paweł Majewski, Andrzej Mencwel, Małgorzata Szpakowska (2013);
- Od aforyzmu do zinu. Leksykon gatunków twórczości słownej [Lexicon of verbal creativity genres, collective volume], edited with Grzegorz Godlewski, Agnieszka Karpowicz, Marta Rakoczy (2014);
- Wśród ludzi, rzeczy i znaków. Krzysztofowi Pomianowi w darze [Among people, things and signs. A Festschrift for Krzysztof Pomian], edited with Andrzej Kołakowski, Andrzej Mencwel, Jacek Migasiński, Małgorzata Szpakowska (2016);
- Antropologia pamięci. Zagadnienia i wybór tekstów [Anthropology of Memory. Issues and selection of texts], edited with Paweł Dobrosielski, Paweł Majewski, Marcin Napiórkowski, Roch Sulima (2018);
- Józef Czapski. Itinéraires de verité, edited with Maria Delaperrière and Maciej Forycki (2020),
- Rethinking modern Polish identities: transnational encounters, edited with Agnieszka Pasieka (2023).
Co-author of textbooks
- academic textbook for students Anthropology of Culture (2005);
- textbook on cultural knowledge for secondary schools Man in culture (2006).
Publications in preparation (working titles):
- Written Things. On everyday writing practices and their materiality;
- Beyond Literature. Poles’ writings in the 20th century;
- Between notation and image. On the diaries of Polish painters;
- Witold Gombrowicz and publishers.
Classes and seminars:
Course classes: Anthropology of culture; Anthropology of the word; History of 20th century Polish culture.
Seminars: Personal diary as an everyday writing practice: action, materiality, text; Painters’ diaries as a writing practice: between word and image; Life writing competitions. Memoir-writing practices in Poland in the 20th century; Cultural history: theories, categories, problems (proseminar); Polish modern culture (19th and 20th centuries): attitudes – practices – ideas (MA seminar); Cultural history. Polish modern culture (XIX-XX) century (doctoral seminar); Cultural history of Poland of the XIX and XX century: new approaches, methods, proposals (doctoral seminar for SDNH); Recent directions in media research (doctoral seminar for SDNH, together with Prof. Iwona Kurz).
Reaserch projects (since 2005)
2005-2008
Realisation of individual research project “Dziennik polskiego pisarza w XX wieku (Żeromski, Nałkowska, Dąbrowska, Gombrowicz, Herling-Grudziński)” [Polish writer’s diary in the 20th Century (Żeromski, Nałkowska, Dąbrowska, Gombrowicz, Herling-Grudziński) financed by the Polish Ministry of Science.Researches in the archives in Poland (National Library, Warsaw University Library), France (Archives of emigration circle “Kultura”), United States (Beinecke Library).
2005-2006
Program of Franco-Polish cooperation between Laboratoire d’Anthropologie et d’Histoire de l’Institution de la Culture (CNRS/ Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences) and the Institute of Polish Culture (University of Warsaw): “Écritures autobiographiques en France et en Pologne: formes, contraintes, usages, methodologie de l’étude (XIXe-XXe siècles)” [Autobiographic writing in France and Poland (19th and 20th century): forms, ways of usage, limitations, methods of research (19th and 20th century)] directed by Philippe Artières and Pawel Rodak.
2009-2012
Participation in the scientific and editorial project “Twórczość słowna w perspektywie antropologicznej: media, gatunki, praktyki” [Verbal creation from an anthropological perspective: media, genres, practices] financed by the Polish Ministry of Science and Informatization.
2010-2011
Program of Franco-Polish cooperation between Groupe de l’Anthropologie de l’écriture de Institut
Interdisciplinaire d’Anthropologie du Contemporain (IIAC ; CNRS/ Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales) and and the Institute of Polish Culture (University of Warsaw): “Materialité de l’écriture” [Materiality of Writing – Polish-French research workshop] directed by Philippe Artières and Pawel Rodak.
2011-2014
Participation in the scientific and editorial project “Antropologia pamięci” [Anthropology of Memory] financed by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, NPRH programme.
2012-2015
Participation in the scientific and editorial project “Praktyki językowe jako praktyki kulturowe w ujęciu antropologii słowa” [Linguistic practices as cultural practices in terms of anthropology of the word] financed by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, NCN programme.
2013-2017
Managing (with Małgorzata Litwinowicz-Droździel) the research and editorial project “Wystawy krajowe i tematyczne na ziemiach polskich w latach 1821-1929 a doświadczanie procesów modernizacyjnych” [Expositions of modernity. National and thematic exhibitions in Poland in the years 1821-1929 and the experience of modernization processes] financed by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, NPRH programme.
2018-2019
Realization of the scientific program “La guerre est finie? Production écrite de et sur 1918 dans les écrits d’Europe centrale” [The war is over? Written production of and about 1918 in the writings of Central Europe]. Program led by EUR’ORBEM and Centre of Polish Civilization, directed by Xavier Galmiche and Paweł Rodak.
2021-2025
Managing the research and editorial project “ Życie pisane na konkurs. Praktyki pamiętnikarskie w Polsce 1918-1939 (analiza – recepcja – znaczenie)” [Life writing competitions. Memoir-writing practices in Poland 1918-1939 (analysis – reception – meaning)] financed by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education, NCN programme.