Kolory Afryki w powieści Henryka Sienkiewicza W pustyni i w puszczy. Część I: świat przyrody

Abstrakt

The object of studies presented in the article are the designations of colours documented in the novel by Henryk Sienkiewicz entitled In Desert and Wilderness. Against all appearances, it is not the issue treated only marginally by the writer, which may be a little surprising if we take into account the character of the book (an adventure novel for youth, focused basically on the lively, attracting attention plot and not on extensive author’s narration). The author of the article distinguishes more than a dozen of groups of realities especially often characterised from the point of view of their colours.
Primarily, these are the descriptions concerning the world of African flora and fauna – exotic for the Polish reader. As it results from the conducted studies, the attention of Sienkiewicz is mainly drawn to the colours of animals, especially birds. It is likely that the writer’s  predilection for hunting played here a decisive role. African flora is basically presented in the form of colourful spots against the background of greenery, and not by detailed descriptions of the appearance of individual representatives of a given species.
Additionally, the writer’s interest is aroused by changes of colours of the sky and the whole surrounding world depending on the time of day, atmospheric conditions, light intensity (mainly sunrises and sunsets).