I situate Škvorecký’s novel as both a primary document in the historical record of transitional justice and as a literary creation in the author’s larger oeuvre. In creating this work of autobiographical fiction, Škvorecký deals with the ambiguities of a tumultuous historico-political moment and creates an appropriately complex work of art. I combine social science research with close-reading of the text in the tradition of new historicism. In the introduction I explain the historico-political background, specifically transitional justice and lustration in Czech Republic in the early 1990s, that engendered Two Murders. In my first chapter, I examine the book reviews, Czech and English, that appeared following the two language-respective publications of Two Murders. In the remaining three chapters I present my analysis of the novel based on close-reading and applied historical information. Chapters two and three discuss different but interconnected manifestations of distance. Chapter two examines memory as the temporal distance of the mind, while chapter three explores exile as spatial distance. Škvorecký invests memory and exile with enormous significance, and uses both concepts to depict his characters’ isolation. In the final chapter, I discuss rumor and reputation in the novel’s two distinct story-lines, demonstrating how they come together to create a cohesive artistic work. Approaching the novel as both a historical document and a work of art, I hope to critically examine this complicated historical moment and appraise Škvorecký’s contribution to the post-communist Czech dialogue. / text

This diploma thesis researches the impact of a literary prize on the media image of the awarded book in 2012. More precisely I pursue these awards and winning titles: Jaroslav Seifert Prize (Vladimír Binar: Číňanova pěna), Jiří Orten Award (Vratislav Maňák: Šaty z igelitu), Josef Škvorecký Award (Kateřina Tučková: Žítkovské bohyně), Magnesia Litera - The Book of the Year (Michal Ajvaz: Lucemburská zahrada). First I analyse the change of the quantity (the number of references and the share within the text), then I focus on the modification of the journalistic assessment of the title (on the scale positive - neutral - negative). In first case I use a quantitative analysis of media content, in the second case I use a comparative semiotic analysis. My sample are these Czech periodicals, in alphabetical order: A2, Aktuálně.cz, Hospodářské noviny, Host, iDnes.cz, Lidové noviny, Literární noviny, Reflex, Respekt, Tvar. The main output is a discovery, how the Czech print and online written media reflect the results of the literary prizes, also I (try to) determine the media power of each award.

The thesis deals with the era of the Czech literature in the second half of the 20th century. It focuses on the description of the humorous elements in selected literary works. The works are different in topics and genres too and in the end the works are reflected all together. The main literature sources are the analyzed titles and the book f essays called Silence and laughter by Sylvia Richterová. The first chapter presents an outline of the atmosphere of the 60s, the second chapter defines the topic and genre specifications of the works published in this decade. The third chapter is a methodological guide to comicality. Chapters four to seven analyze individual literary works in several basic points ? composition, language, characters and a description of the nature of the characters as well as the description of the theme.

This diploma thesis deals with the novella The end of the nylon age written by Josef Škvorecký in 1950. It explores the text from a literary historical, literary theoretical and literary "practical", editorial point of view. After the introduction of author's work in necessary period and factual context the thesis focuses on the iterpretation of the novella, its narrative situation and the resulting structure of the text. The thesis then deals with dialogues and dialogic characteristics of the novella. The closing part pays attention to the textological issues - creating of an annotation system to the book. The novella is being related to other artist's work within each theme throughout the entire thesis.