Stefan Żeromski’s Ludzie bezdomni examined as a modernist novel

Two recent analyses explore Stefan Żeromski’s 1900 novel Ludzie bezdomni (“The Homeless”). The work is placed within the Young Poland modernist movement, blending realism, naturalism, impressionism and symbolism. Its episodic, mood‑driven structure foregrounds the inner turmoil of the protagonist, physician Tomasz Judyma, who wrestles with personal duty versus self‑fulfilment.

The authors stress the novel’s historical backdrop of the Russian‑occupied Polish lands in the 1890s, a period of rising capitalism, social inequality and poverty. Homelessness is interpreted not merely as lack of shelter but as a broader symbol of alienation and loss of communal roots. The analyses argue that understanding these social, moral and symbolic layers is essential for reading the novel as a record of its era.