- Without the hubbub of conversations, thudding footsteps, bursts of laughter, nervous whispers, anecdotes, jokes and busyness, i.e. simply without people, this faculty turned out to be just a faculty.' wrote Filip Rudolf, a first-year student of the Faculty of Law and Administration at the University of Gdańsk, in his story. Literary and diaristic attempts concerning the time of the pandemic were awarded in competitions among future lawyers and historians of our university.
The first literary competition entitled I miss you, Faculty! was announced for students by the Dean of the WPiA UG in autumn. The competition for a short story was intended to promote literary culture and creativity and to be a form of activating students. It was modelled on similar initiatives organised at law faculties around the world, e.g. at Yale Law School.
- We are proud of you and very happy that so many works were submitted,' stressed the organisers. Many of the texts that were created were a very emotional record of experiences of isolation, a sense of threat and uncertainty. - 'The works - not devoid of autobiographical threads - have become a valuable deposit in our hands,' - declared the organisers. In their opinion, the competition, which was supposed to be primarily good fun, became, thanks to the participants, moving testimony of emotions, desires and longing for the faculty.
A grand prize of PLN 1000 and ten honourable mentions were awarded. All the awarded works will be successively published on the department's website. Further editions of the literary competition on new topics will be announced.
The first prize in the competition at the Faculty of Law and Administration was awarded to Filip Rudolf, a first-year student of Taxes and Tax Consultancy (part-time), for his work entitled 'Pani T.'
The jury also decided to award distinctions. In this group were (in alphabetical order): Wiktoria Bączek (Criminology, full-time studies, 2nd year, bachelor's degree) - thesis titled 'Wspomnienie'; Ksawery Hajdamowicz (Law, full-time studies, 3rd year) - thesis titled 'Po śladach'; Łucja Konieczna (Law, full-time studies, 2nd year) - thesis titled 'Czy warto?'; Joanna Majkowska (Law, full-time studies, 5th year) - thesis titled 'Dzień z życia aplikanta'; Małgorzata Milewicz (Law, full-time studies, 5th year) - thesis titled 'Cień nadziei'; Emanuela Olszewska (Law, full-time studies, 2nd year) - thesis titled 'Tęsknię za Tobą W. Tango zapominania o nieżyciu'; Martyna Stein (Tax and tax consulting, full-time studies, 2nd year, bachelor's degree) - thesis titled 'List do Wydziału Prawa i Administracji'; Tomasz Szreder (Tax and Tax Consulting, full-time studies, 1st year, bachelor's degree) - thesis titled 'Czarny Gdańsk: Przebudzenie'; Kamila Teodorska (Law, full-time studies, 4th year) - thesis titled 'Ciało'.
Slightly fewer works were submitted to the competition organised by the UG Department of History. The organisers aimed it at the students of the faculty wishing that the experience of isolation, supported by the analysis of various written sources and iconography, would leave a chronicle record of the year 2020 at the faculty.
What emerges from the competition works is a picture of people in a changed family and financial situation, often forced to return to their hometowns. - 'These works show how much the pandemic "ploughed through" and changed these young people. One can see a longing for student life,' - adds prof. dr hab. Tadeusz Stegner, chairman of the competition jury.
The Pandemic Chronicle competition attracted six entries from the fields of local history, art history and German studies. - 'We expected that there would be more works with a historical perspective and history. There were none, and so I am somewhat disappointed,' explains Professor Tadeusz Stegner. In general, however, he assesses their level quite high. - 'They are written in a nice, literary language - this encouraged us,' he adds.
The best thesis was written by Damian Laskowski, a 3rd-year student of German Studies. The prize of 700 PLN was funded by the Dean of the Faculty of History. An additional award for the author of the distinguished paper will be its publication in the next volume of Studia Historica Gedanensia.
The work of Piotr Jakubowski from the 2nd year of ethnology was also distinguished for the originality of the idea. - 'We, on the jury, were very unanimous in our assessment of the works. The results were unanimous,' - adds prof. Tadeusz Stegner.
You can read the prize-winning literary works by students of the Faculty of Law and Administration of UG: