Dzieje pewnej oświeceniowej metafory, czyli o „sprężynie” w literaturze polskiej drugiej połowy XVIII wieku : rekonesans

The subject of the article is an attempt to describe great popularity of one of the important metaphors of the Enlightenment discourse - the spring. Starting from the treatise by Julien Offray de La Mettrie Man-Machine, the author classifies and analyzes the material collected from various Polish texts of the epoch. Particular attention is paid to anthropological dimension of the metaphor covering different spheres of human activity. The analyzed quotes and their frequency indicate an interesting phenomenon: for the Polish writers of the end of the 18th century, the spring metaphor was not ethically neutral, it contained a positive moral message, and therefore it was used much more often in praise than rebuke. At the same time, the laudable use of this metaphor supported patriotic attitudes founded on the stoic concept of virtue.