This thesis focuses on the work of the Čapeks Brothers and monitors their premonition of a coming destruction, the World War II. It consists of two parts theoretical and practical. The practical part presents poster set freely interpreting a Hugo Haas film The White Disease.

English abstract The use of propaganda and methods of governing and regulation of the regional press in Czechoslovakia during 1948-1956 (using the example of the guidelines of KV and OV KSČ and the region around Liberec) The presented study follows the development of censorship and the methods of media and press control in Czechoslovakia from 1948 to1953, and in particular during 1956. This study focuses mainly on the methods and processes used by the Czechoslovak Communist Party to dominate the media and how it concentrated namely on the relationship between local and regional media and the centralized governance under the powerful influence of the Czechoslovak Communist Party. After February of 1948, the mass media in Czechoslovakia took on a different role than the one it had up until that time. Even so, up until 1953, there was no official censorship office and the media fell under the jurisdiction of the Party apparatus, or alternately under the Ministries of Education, Science and Arts or Information, which accordingly managed and influenced media content. However, it was still under the curatorship of the UV Czechoslovak Communist Party, as the following work will show. As will also be shown, after February of 1948 the Communist Party was unable to gain influence over society at various levels and...

Charles University in Prague Faculty of Arts Institute of Czech Studies Historical Sciences - Czech History Zdenko M a r š á l e k ABSTRACT OF THE PhD THESIS "Česká", nebo "československá" armáda? Národnostní složení československých vojenských jednotek v zahraničí v letech 1939-1945 "Czech", or "Czechoslovak" Army? The ethnic and nationality composition of the Czechoslovak military units-in-exile in 1939-1945 tutor: prof. PhDr. Jan Kuklík, CSc. (†) PhDr. Jan Gebhart, DrSc. 2014 ABSTRACT General background One of the most important phenomena, which is important especially in current and future Europe, is the problem of the personal self-identification of individuals in the multinational and multicultural environment of higher (e.g., political) units, in particular national self- identification. For research about the problems connected with this phenomenon, the sample of the Czechoslovak units-in-exile during the World War II is an almost ideal historical model. The Czechoslovak units were, by far, the most diverse armed forces among the all exile-armies; yet this issue has not attracted the attention it deserves, neither in terms of different nationalities, nor from the perspective of ethnic issues in the units as a whole. The issue of the nationality in the resistance-in-exile was determined by the needs...

Classical mythology has been one of the main sources of inspiration for European artists for centuries. It also remained current during the 20th century. From the 1920s, one can see increasing interest in classical myths; it becomes a source of inspiration even for artists of avant-garde art movements. The 20th century artist approach themes from classical mythology from a position of newly acquired artistic freedom. Release of iconographic conventions and academic rules, emphasis on psychology and individuality of a modern man brings specific forms of reception and reinterpretation of classical myths. In many cases, classical mythology carries allegorical meanings in a relation to contemporary political and social events, often in a very critical tone. But it also represents a tool for one's personal coping with reality. The thirties and early forties of the 20th century with dark atmosphere affected by war conflicts represent the culmination period of classical myths in visual arts. The tendency can be observed both in the art of European and Czech origin. Antiquity and classical mythology become the symbols of a return to the roots of European culture and civilization, symbols of the common European humanistic heritage. The collection of nearly 180 works of modern Czech art inspired by classical...

This thesis deals with a reform of Czech higher education after the Second World War. While traditional treatments follow the communist experiment from its beginnings until its 'inevitable' downfall in 1989, this work focuses on its roots and end with the adoption of the new Higher Education Act in 1950. This reversal of perspective reveals similarities between the communist reform and modernisation trends which influenced the development of higher education also in the West. We follow the discussion about the future of higher education, which went on in 1930s-1950s, try to see how universities tried to approach the tension between their freedoms and demands for serving the public, and analyse the way in which the communist reform responded to this issue. Czech higher education was formed by Humboldtian principles, which were partly implemented in mid-19th century. During the interwar period, this framework basically remained in place: higher education developed in terms of quantity rather than quality but certain problems with demanded attention also started coming to the fore. Attempts by the Ministry of Education to implement partial reforms met with resistance from the academic institutions and many academics focused on passionately defending the autonomy of universities. During the wartime, the...

This thesis is concentrated on the topic of the post-war migration of Roms from Slovakia to the Czech Lands as the crucial process in the post-war history of Roms on the territory of former Czechoslovakia which had its effects not only on individual groups of Roms living in Slovakia and migrating to the Czech Lands, but also on the next developments in the relations of the Czech majority society towards the Roms and changes in the approach to them on the side of central state institutions. The thesis offers a presentation of a complex historic case study of post-war migration of a particular local group of Roms from south- eastern Slovakia to the city of Brno (Moravia), based on a synthetic research method combining both oral history and written sources of mostly regional provenience. The author has applied the method in two different contexts: while reconstructing the developments in the situation of the group of Roms and their relations with the majority society in Slovakia during 1920' to 1970's, and while mapping the post-war migration of part of these people in relation to two localities in the Czech Lands, with one representing a transit locality of their early post-war migration and the other their final destination where this group of Roms lives still today. The author places the case study...

The doctoral thesis Czechoslovakia, Mexico and Central America 1945-1989 analyses political, economic and cultural relations between that country of the called Iron Curtain and the Mesoamerican countries during the Cold War in the twentieth century. The research is based mainly on unpublished archival materials, mainly of Czech origin. It is also complemented by fewer materials obtained at the Central American countries' official archives. The wider context of international politics is primarily outlined in the introductory chapters, which aims, on one hand, to inform readers about the development of the Czechoslovak diplomacy and foreign policy and how it was influenced by the Soviet Union and, on the other hand, to describe the unstable political situation prevailing then in the Central American countries, which were also under the constant scrutiny of the United States of America. Thereafter, the analysis focuses on the Czechoslovak-Mexican relations, which is thematically divided into political, cultural and economic sections. A special chapter is dedicated to the activities of the Czechoslovak secret service in Mexico, as a country conveniently located near to the United States. Other chapters study the bilateral relations between Prague and the individual capitals of Central America. The work...

The thesis focuses on the contacts between Czechoslovakia and the Soviet Union, specifically in the area of the 1930s fine arts. This topic has been mapped from 1930 to 1938 (before the Munich Agreement). The first part of the text deals with the historical-political background of that period and cultural relations between the two countries with emphasis on fine arts. Specific manifestations of these relations can be found in the next part of the thesis, using analysis and comparison of the Czechoslovak printed periodicals and archival documents, especially political news and correspondence. This thesis focuses mainly on realized art exhibitions and their reflections. All of this has been set into the historical and political context, thus achieving a comprehensive description of the topic. Key words Czechoslovakia, Graphic Arts, Caricature, Catalogue, Contacts, Printed Periodical, Political News, the Soviet Union, 1930s, Fine Arts, Art Exhibition.

The thesis deals with life and work of bishop,later cardinal Frantisek Tomask in the 50´s and 60´s of the twentieth century. The work particularly focuses on the extremely interesting and moving period,when Frantisek Tomasek worked as a priest and religion teacher (scripture) in Moravian village of Moravska Uzova.The thesis involves both copies of authentic documenst from the Archives of Opava and also testimonies of his former pupils and parishioners, giving supporting evidence of many activities of Mr. Tomasek at that time. The first part of the work brings a detailed description of the state of the then Catholic Church on the background of complicated and hard political situation in former Czechoslovakia in the 50´s and 60´s. The other part focuses on eleven years of life and work of Frantisek TOmasek in Moravska Uzova, especially on his religious and pedagogical activities. The evidence of a very successful and human work of this unique man can be found both in this part of work and also in the enclosure - in the form of re-told testimonies of his former pupils.

The thesis maps the change in the territorial structure of Czechoslovak foreign trade in 1945-1953. The aim of the study is verification of the hypothesis that allows for direct foreign trade policy constraints on political events. In other words, as the gradual political integration of Czechoslovakia into the Soviet bloc touched territorial structure of foreign trade. The text examines the changing trend in foreign trade, which has been shown by growth of the share of the USSR at the expense of the capitalist states, and addresses the question of whether and how much the Soviet Union could replace the liberal market economy. The work contributes to the knowledge of the functioning of the post-war period with foreign exchange trading and describes the influence of foreign trade by the disproportionately greater economic and political entity.