Quote by Maria Dąbrowska: “Man is capable of anything, both good and evil, but must always choose.”

Dąbrowska addresses the dual nature of human potential, acknowledging our capacity for both great virtue and profound depravity. Crucially, she underscores the moral responsibility each individual holds to consciously choose their path, emphasizing free will and ethical decision-making.

This philosophical observation reflects the ethical dilemmas faced by characters in *Noce i dnie*, as they navigate personal desires and societal expectations in a complex and often morally ambiguous world, predating but anticipating the moral choices of WWII.

Polish novelist whose four-volume work Nights and Days is considered one of the greatest achievements of twentieth-century Polish prose. Her writing chronicled the lives of the Polish intelligentsia and landed gentry across decades of upheaval, from the late nineteenth century through the Second World War. She was a committed humanist and social activist throughout her long career.