This article deals with the role of empathy in the work of Olga Tokarczuk. It begins with an examination of the autocritical reflections in her essays, most notably her view of literature and its functions. This is followed by a discussion of the range of emotional involvement presented in her fiction and the role of empathy in her narrative strategy. The article argues that empathy is at the heart of her creativity and her understanding of literature.

The issues raised in the article focus on the ways of communicating family narratives from the perspective of reflection on this type of historical writing by the history of historiography. An expression of this reflection is the proposed classification of narrative strategies and genre types of narration within the set of family histories, and the conceptual category of family histories, which captures this set and opens the field for further discussions on the phenomenon of private family narratives.