My diploma thesis deals with socialist realism. I have demonstrated that the content of this term has been changing regarding the political situation and it was loosely replacing the term folk art in historical texts. I have proved that the opinions of experts on socialist realism differ and a clear definition of the term socialist realism does not probably exist. The lack of definition of socialist realism was used to manipulate the artistic community. The thesis helped me to defend the proposition that the Communist Party has supervised and influenced the operation of the film industry even before the February coup in 1948 by the Ministry of Information, where a communist Václav Kopecký was in the lead. Interventions into films and purges of film workers were made already in the immediate postwar period. The main cultural-political directive on cinematography from April 1950, which should have provided a faster enforcement and obligatory effect of socialist realism, aimed to increase the film production. My thesis has shown that this directive, together with the bureaucratic way of approving films, disputes within the Communist Party, changes in film authorities and slow work of creative teams, contributed to an unprecedented crisis in the film production and to a fatal failure to meet the plan in the following year. In my thesis, I have proved that the film The Emperor and the Golem fully complies with two out of three principles of socialist realism. I have labeled the principle that requires truthfulness and historical concreteness as partly met. From my analysis, it can be concluded that this historical comedy has all the features that are required from the works of socialist realism.

This diploma thesis deals with one phase of Josef Smrkovský's life between 1945-1963. After WW II and his engagement in the Prague Uprising, he was an eminent communist politician who possessed considerable power in the agrarian policy. However, he was arrested in 1951, became a victim of political trials and was sentenced to jail. He was later released due to the order of a rehabilitation committee, but he was not fully rehabilitated. The thesis examines and compares primary sources on Smrkovský's trial, describing methods of the State Secret Police such as surveillance, interrogations and both physical and psychological violence. Reports of Smrkovský's cellmates are also commented on. The thesis concludes with the analysis of rehabilitation committees and the effort of Smrkovský to clear himself. He re-entered political life at the beginning of the sixties. KEYWORDS Josef Smrkovský, politics, persecution, the fifties, The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, State Secret Police, rehabilitation

The thesis aims to provide possible interdisciplinar explanatory schema of the fact, which is in literature as a mass conformity of citizens of real-socialistic régime in Czechoslovakia. Even in the 70s and 80s, in a time of ideological emptiness, was achieved that the vast majority of the population participated in the rituals of power, which could have a considerable psychological impact. People were regularly reminded of their humbling and social psychological task is to present concepts able to describe, how could be such a humiliation at one's self-image processed and what effect this may have on general conformity. By the most symbolic ritual, the elections, it is also necessary to examine, in what form were they period presented, because this also has an impact on the degree of tension between own actions and convictions.

This work examines the prosecution of the Roman Catholic Church in the Communist-ruled Czechoslovak Republic. The first part analyzes the mutual relationship of the communist ideology and the Roman Catholic Church. The basic tenets of communism are presented via the works of Karl Marx, Vladimir Ilyich Lenin and consecutive texts labeled Marxist- Leninist. The thoughts of the church are presented through the statements of several popes that took a stand against the ideals of communism and the atrocities committed in their name. The second chapter analyzes the individual steps the Communist-controlled state took against the church. Particular attention is devoted to the period from the February 1948 Communist takeover up to the end of the 1950s. This period can be further divided into three phases, distinguished by the differing tactics employed by the Communist Party. In the first phase, the Communists were attempting to subdue the church, the second phase was characteristic by very ruthless prosecution of the church officials, while the hallmark of the third phase was mainly a systematic policy of atheization. The aim of this work is a comparison of the ideological underpinnings of the Communist ideology with the real-world practice of the attempted elimination of religion from society. Focus is...

Main goal of this thesis is research of everyday life specifics in Cheb region as a region on the west border of the former Czechoslovak Socialist Republic and eventual interception of these specifics in regional or national press in last twenty years before the Velvet Revolution. The base for the research became the weekly magazine Hraničář as the only regional newspaper published throughout the whole studied period and the research was conducted using searches of the sample chosen in advance (years 1970, 1971, 1980, 1981, 1989, 1990). Any predicative facts about the local newspapers, the composition of the editorial staff and possible editors impact (respectively presumed inability to influence) on the newspaper content in a system of directive management and reflections of the Chebsko region as a border region in the immediate vicinity of the Iron Curtain were of interest of the research. The core of the work is to draw a picture of everyday life of "ordinary" citizens of the region with regard to the above facts and focusing on different aspects of life in society such as the local economy, agriculture or cultural, sport and social life in the city. The thesis also deals with the editions and contents of the newspaper during the periods of anniversaries of essential historical events (e.g....

The thesis deals with actions and activities of Central Press Supervision Office in the period 1953-1966. The goals of this thesis may be further divided in four areas, i.e. gradual formation of Central Press Supervision Office, specific fields of interest of censorship, personnel resources, and finally departmental division of the above mentioned Office. The thesis is sourced mainly from primary materials in archives. The acquisition and further research of such materials in their historical context made it possible to postulate and clarify given thesis subject. The thesis offers a complex overview of the function of Central Press Supervision Office within the background of censorship in The Czech Republic as a whole and with regard to its specific aspects.

The aim of this work is to describe how the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia influenced the personnel policy of the Czechoslovak Radio and thereby interfered into radio broadcasting in the years 1945 - 1948. In the introductory chapters thesis focuses on political and economic developments in Czechoslovakia after 1945, with a significant part describing the parliamentary elections in May, 1946. In the following chapters thesis describes the development of media, which had entirely a new socially responsible role. At the same time in the post-war Czechoslovakia there was a prevailing opinion that the media should not be a subject of uncontrolled business anymore, but rather should be under state control. The main part of the thesis describes the development of Radio. At that time the only mass medium also obtained a new role - in the past broadcasting had primarily a entertainment feature, during the Third Republic Radio became an imporant organizer of public life. Under the circumstances various groups had an interest to gain influence in Radio. Mostly communists were successful. It was easier, because they managed to occupy several crucial functions of the management of Radio. At the same time they interefered with a strong apparatus - from the Ministry of Information, through the Revolutionary...

Diploma thesis is aspiring to cover and interpret processes, which in the period of culminating Stalinism determined course and results of intraparty terror in the local - mainly regional and departmental - organizations of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. It is thoroughly addressing the state of affairs on the lower levels of the party organism. It is monitoring not only techniques of functioning or on the contrary dysfunction of hierarchic machinery, but also various interests of given individuals or even whole groups emerging in the party. Under the label of intraparty terror it then comprises dictatorial practice of leading officials which established itself on the local level as well as fight against it headed be lower functionaries and active party members. Both actualities are not interpreted from the outside by some general causes, but as autonomous phenomenons with their own preconditions and dynamics, more or less different in every region. Resulting scenarios consequently demonstrated considerable variety. Finally great scope is dedicated to the Stalinist ideology, which is not percepted as a constricted doctrine creating loyal subjects, but as a complex discourse providing party members with language in which they can act and pursue their goals. It endowed necessary instruments...

This dissertation gives a comprehensive picture of the press organs of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia in the district of Pardubice during the so-called normalization. The first chapter describes the historical contexts of this era, particularly changes in policy after the onset of Gustáv Husák at the head of the Communist Party in April 1969. With this change is related to another topic: extensive purges in the Communist Party, which took place in 1970. The second chapter focuses on changes in the media at the beginning of normalization, in particular the abolition of some periodicals and restoring censorship, and changes in the cultural field, especially strengthening the focus on the Soviet Union, the emergence of new artists' unions and various legal regulation in order to strengthen ideological supervision of the this sphere . The third and fourth sections are devoted East Bohemian press: daily newspaper Pochodeň, published in Hradec Králové, and Pardubice district newspaper Zář. It briefly describes the history of these newspapers and their effect during the Prague Spring and subsequent developments in normalization. Attention is then focussed mainly on their cultural sections and their scope, content and authors of articles. Analysis of the articles from the cultural sections provides...

The thesis deals with religious sects in Czechoslovakia in the 1950s. Firstly, it describes new religious movements, which occurred in Czechoslovakia in the first half of the 20th century, especially Jehovah's Witnesses, Adventism, Mormonism and the others. The key theme of this thesis is the phenomenon of religious sects. It explores a procedure of the government, Communist party of Czechoslovakia and State Security. The thesis deals also with the conscientious objection in Czechoslovakia in the 1950s. In conclusion the thesis tries to describe the image of religious sects in newspapers. It draws from various primary sources (National Archives of the Czech Republic, Security Services Archive, Military History Archive) and from various historiographical and sociological literature.