Syllabus
Lecture topics:
1. Introduction: Czech Inventors Throughout the History: Overview of the ground-breaking inventions made by Prokop Diviš, Josef Ressel, Jan Evangelista Purkyně, Kryštof Rad, Johann Gregor Mendel, František Křižík, Jan Jánský, Jaroslav Heyrovský, Otto Wichterle, Antonín Holý.
2. Tomáš Garrique Masaryk and Václav Havel Shaping Czech Cultural and Academic Environment: Analysis of the interdisciplinary contributions made by the two presidents from philosophical, sociological, and artistic point of view. The reflection of Czech totalitarian regime in Havel’s plays and its interpretation in the world.
3. The Most Translated Representatives of Czech Literature 1: Antimilitarism expressed in the novels written by Karel Čapek, Jaroslav Hašek and Buhumil Hrabal. Analysis of English translations and discussion on the translatability of cultural facts.
4. The Most Translated Representatives of Czech Literature 2: Introduction into the Czech exile literature. Philosophical, sociological, and cultural features of the Czech history expressed by Josef Škvorecký, Ludvík Vaculík, and Milan Kundera. Concepts of absurdity, alienation, and isolation.
5. Prague as the European Centre of Linguistics: The activities of Prague Linguistic Circle, cooperation of Czech linguists – Jan Mukařovský, Vilém Mathesius, Vladimír Skalička, etc. – with international experts in language and literary studies. Distinguishing principles of Czech Structuralism and its (mis)interpretation in the world.
6. Czech Translation and Interpreting Studies: Tracing Czech Structuralism in the field of Czech translation studies. Introduction into the translation theory elaborated by Jiří Levý, drawing a comparison with the global translation studies. The important role of translation in the international transfer of a minor literature. The role of conference interpreting in the establishment of international dialogue during the Czech modern history.
7. Czech Philosophers – Past and Present: Jan Patočka’s theory of existential phenomenology in the context of Czech political events during the second half of the 20th century. Current challenges faced by the Czech society explained in the philosophical theses by Patočka’s former students: Tomáš Halík, Václav Bělohradský, Pavel Kouba, Daniel Kroupa.
8. Milestones of the Czech History Expressed in Filmography and Drama: Discussion on the international reception of movies One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Cozy Dens, Kolja in comparison to its perception in the Czech context. Introducing the work of the most renowned Czech directors. The “personage” of Jára Cimrman and its cultural background.
9. Poetism – the Purely Czech Avant-Garde: Historical background of the programme, the work of the Devětsil association and its members: Vítězslav Nezval, Karel Teige, Vladislav Vančura. The Nobel Prize winning Czechoslovak writer Jaroslav Seifert. Discussion on the translatability of the (experimental) poetry.
10. Czech Worldview in Visual Art: Alfons Mucha and his expression of Slavic history. Brief history of the Czech surrealism inspired by vivid contacts between Czech and French artists. The work of Toyen, Jindřich Štýrský, Jan Zrzavý. Czech Cubism and its main representatives: Bohumil Kubišta, Josef Čapek, Emil Filla. The founder of Czech abstract art František Kupka.
11. Excursion to the National Gallery in Prague: (for the virtual mobility students, there will be an alternative in a form of video presentation).
12. Czech Travellers & Explorers in the World: Overview of the pioneering journeys that brought first information about various ethnic groups, cultures, and environments, contributing to the multicultural awareness in Czech society. Emil Holub, Pavel Jáchym Šebesta, Josef Kořenský, Alois Musil, Alberto Vojtěch Frič, Jiří Hanzelka and Miroslav Zikmund.
13. Exam: Comparative essay based on the findings acquired during the course.
Annotation
The aim of the course is to familiarize international students with the Czech culture applying an interdisciplinary perspective with focus on Humanities. The Czech cultural milieu will be presented within various phenomena reflecting the historical background of the 19th and 20th centuries.
After presenting an overview of key findings and inventions discovered by Czech researchers, the interactive lectures will focus on selected concepts and theories in the literature, history, politics, philosophy, communication, and art that may contribute to a better understanding of the Czech mentality and society. The representatives of each discipline were selected in respect to the international reception of their ideas.
Apart from broadening horizons, the course aims to develop a fruitful multicultural discussion drawing parallels between Czech and international cultural development. Considering dynamic changes related to the global pandemic, the course is originally designed for a hybrid mode of teaching – face-to-face & virtual sessions.