Abstract

The text is a rejoinder to critical remarks which Zdzislawa Piatek aimed at the paper of the author of „Cats, demon, spells and ... naturalisation”. It appears that the differences between the standpoints of both polemicists are not as great as it might seem. In the author's opinion, one of the sources of the impression that those differences are substantial has been an overfree style of the essay, and in particular a little irresponsible use of the term „magic strategy”. The author tries presently to expose his views in a more accurate way. In particular, he stresses that he did not mean to reduce the phenomenon of ethnic language to magic behaviour, but rather to look for the origins of this language in such a behaviour