"On time. Essays in Honour of Professor Jerzy Limon" edited by Jean Ward, Maria Fengler and Agnieszka Żukowska

One of Jerzy Limon’s favourite Shakespearean concepts was that of the “syllables of time” (Macbeth, 5.5)—probably because it accords with his conviction that when we use language, whether natural or artistic, to impose some kind of form upon the past, we lift the bygone onto a completely different plane of existence by making it part of our present experience. The same intentions stand behind the publication of this volume, whose aim is to show that Limon’s time is still present time, although it can now be experienced differently: within the dimension of memory, reading, inspiration, dialogue, and polemics.

This book’s title, echoing what most intrigued Limon in theatre and art, also points to the actual times in which he lived and worked, whose rhythm was determined by the successive stages in the construction of the Gdańsk Shakespeare Theatre, the annual Gdańsk Shakespeare Festival, and the numerous artistic and academic projects that he initiated or co-authored. The title also draws the reader’s attention to the evolutions and changes that have taken place in the humanities over the last few decades and left their imprint on Limon’s research. Equally, it points to the time of his individual academic and artistic peregrinations.

From the Introduction