Jagna’s complaint against Hanka

Jagusia’s complaint against Hanka turns her expulsion from the Boryna household into a formal legal dispute. Jagusia and Dominikowa bring the matter to court, accusing Hanka of throwing Jagusia out. The episode places Hanka’s authority within the household under scrutiny: the Voyt tells her Jagusia had a rightful place there and that Hanka had no right to lay hands on her.

The Complaint Reaches Court

The complaint is reported to Hanka by the Voyt, who says that Dominikowa has gone with Jagusia to accuse her. His warning makes the consequence of the expulsion explicit: Hanka could be punished for lawlessness and violence. The scene establishes that the dispute is no longer only a household quarrel or a matter of village opinion; Jagusia and her mother have sought redress through a court.

The Voyt also recounts that Dominikowa had been to confession and then spent a long time speaking with the priest. He qualifies this account as information he has only partly gleaned, so it does not establish what was said or whether the priest took a position. The report nevertheless shows the complaint moving through several sources of authority and influence, from the family to the court and the church.

Hanka and the Voyt

Hanka initially responds to the warning with defiance, treating the complaint as unlikely to harm her. The Voyt urges her to put matters right. He offers to do what he can to have the complaint withdrawn, while insisting that Hanka herself must undo the injury. His proposed intervention presents reconciliation as possible, but it does not erase the distinction between withdrawing a case and repairing the harm that prompted it.

Hanka answers by asking whether the Voyt is defending an injured woman or his lover. Her accusation recasts his legal advice as potentially self-interested: rather than accept his offer as impartial mediation, she points to his alleged personal attachment to Jagusia. The exchange leaves his motives contested and Hanka unwilling to take his warning at face value.

Legal and Social Stakes

The episode gives the expulsion a consequence beyond immediate exclusion: Hanka may face formal punishment for acting against Jagusia. At the same time, the Voyt’s offer to influence withdrawal of the complaint suggests that the path from accusation to resolution may involve personal intervention as well as legal process. The narrative records no ruling or final settlement here; it ends with the complaint pending and Hanka resisting the proposed remedy.