Critically Examine the Argument that Nowa Huta Reflects with Amazing Clarity the Contemporary Contradictions in Poland

There are few examples in the world where the symbolic juxtaposition of a nation's past and future are as striking as they are in Poland. Throughout the country there are endless images representing an uneasy coexistence of a communist past in combination with a rapid move to the market economy. Yet perhaps the starkest change in terms of symbolism is most apparent in the purpose built socialist town of Nowa Huta. Nowa Huta was constructed from scratch, funded by the Soviet Union to represent the proletarian opponent to the 'intellectual and Catholic' Kraków. Together with…