200 gender and literature T he reactions provoked in Poland by the migrant crisis gave voice to a heterogeneous nexus of passions. One of the threads in this nexus deserves particular attention, though it may not be the most conspicuous among them. Among the loud objections to the idea that even a handful of families in need might be invited to Poland, and along- side the deplorable yet predictable outpouring of xeno- phobia, there were expressions of amazement at the very notion that the European Union might demand anything at all of us. At the heart of this affect lay not the migrants themselves, but the notion of our being encumbered with any sort of duty. If I am not mistaken, this astonishment – which of course immediately gave rise to indignation – stems from a certain fascinating memory structure. Pol- ish society at large behaved (and continues to behave) as if it once made a payment of some sort – as if it had done or experienced something – that absolved it of any subsequent duty. But if a given subject assumes stances, holds convictions, and undertakes actions that are driven by this phantom memory of nonexistent events – and let us be honest, no “payment” of any sort was ever made, and we have done nothing to justify such beliefs – then it may be surmised that these thoughts and actions are Adam Lipszyc The Little Pole and the Phantasy of Impotence DOI: 10.18318/td.2017.en.2.12 Adam Lipszyc – essayist and translator, he works at the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, lectures at the Graduate School for Social Research, Collegium Civitas, and the Franz Kafka Universität Muri bei Bern. He investigates the intersections of philosophy, theology, and literature. He was awarded the Andrzej Siemek Prize by Literatura na Świecie, the Allianz Kulturstiftung prize, and the Gdynia Literary Prize. Contact: adamlipszyc@gmail. com