Connect: Poland experienced great
political unrest and upheaval during
Szymborska's lifetime: Nazi and Soviet
occupations during World War II,
postwar repressive Communist
control, decades-long resistance of
workers against the Communist
regime, and, in 1989, the election of a
new, non-Communist government.
How does Poland's political situation
inform Szymborska's choice of subject
and her tone in "The End and the
Beginning"?