“A tough woman in a man’s world” or a sensitive romantic? Helena Anna née Weil Geyer in the light of her written memoirs

Abstract

The aim of the article is to present the private life of Helena Anna Geyer (née Weil) (1855–1935) in the light of her memories and to find an answer to the title question. A woman who was born into a landowning family fell in love with her sister’s brother-in-law, Gustaw Geyer, at a young age. After years of unhappy love, she became close to her beloved, who soon became her husband. The marriage with the son of Ludwik Geyer forced Helena to change her surroundings. Moving from the family estate to the developing Lodz meant that she had to get used to the reality of the big city. In her memoirs written down years later, she told about how she found herself in a new situation.

Memories of H.A. Geyer are the testimony of a person who experienced both the life of the landowner and the rich bourgeoisie. The clash of both worlds shows the reader how demanding life was for an individual in a 19th-century metropolis. Unfortunately, the world of the Łódź bourgeoisie was also very brutal for the sensitive H.A. Geyer.