|
|
Shelley's Negotiation of Metaphysics
Balvín, Tomáš ; Procházka, Martin (advisor) ; Horová, Miroslava (referee)
This thesis aims to understand Percy Bysshe Shelley's attitude towards the role of the poet in society as an usher of progressive change. To do this, it examines his metaphysics, chiefly his contact with the doctrines of idealism, which crystallised at the dawn of his life through his intimate relationship with the works of Plato, the early engagement with French materialists, English philosophers like Priestley and Hume & a later one with Lucretian materialism, and his deep entanglement with the first modern proponent of anarchism, William Godwin - who could be described as a perfectionist by some or as utilitarianist by others. By doing that the thesis seeks to shed light on how these doctrines influenced Shelley and how he conversed with and critiqued them, revealing the intricacies of his work because, in Shelley's philosophy, the nature of differentiation between the two, that is between materialism and idealism, is notoriously problematic. The beginning of the thesis serves to engage with Shelley's early contact with materialist doctrines, their fast repudiation in their pure form and his later critique in "Cloud" and response to them. The materialist influences of Shelley are pondered, as well as some of the possibilities of interpreting Shelley in a materialist way. Next, Shelley's...
|
|
|
Fantastic Society: Social Themes in Terry Pratchett's Discworld
Hájek, Jáchym ; Clark, Colin Steele (advisor) ; Horová, Miroslava (referee)
Terry Pratchett is best known as the author of Discworld, a series of more than forty books and several short stories set in a world that is often described as humorous fantasy. Pratchett, however, uses this genre and its imaginative and satiric opportunities not only to tell stories, but also to mediate his own views on some of the major social themes such as feminism, religion, or racism. He uses the stereotypical fantasy roles and settings and subverts them to point out real world problems and issues. The rise of popularity of the fantasy genre, especially satirical or humorous enables Pratchett to present his views to a broader audience, and to create a world mirroring and distorting the real one as to show the importance and impact of these issues on society. The fantasy setting also gives Pratchett the opportunity to create a world in which these themes can be illustrated and discussed freely. The first chapter sets up Discworld as a Secondary World and presents the topics that will be discussed. The second chapter deals with the many forms of racism in Discworld. The first part of the chapter discusses the standard, human-human type of racism, which is illustrated in the book Jingo. A subchapter is then dedicated to human-nonhuman and dwarf-troll racism, illustrated in Thud!, where Pratchett...
|
|
|
Perception of Time in the Novels of Virginia Woolf
Byrtusová, Klára ; Beran, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Horová, Miroslava (referee)
The predominant objective of this thesis is an analysis of the representation of time in three novels written by a modernist writer Virginia Woolf. This thesis studies dichotomy between a psychological, inner time and time imposed on characters by the external world. It is claimed that the juxtaposition of these concepts in the novels Mrs Dalloway, The Waves and To the Lighthouse can be compared with notions of l'étendu and durée, represented by a French philosopher Henri Bergson. The notion of the subjective nature of durée is based on its quality of existing internally, while being independent of the external time. This characteristics is contrasted with the notion of l'étendu that can be described as the external time, enforced by its mechanical division of time into units. The juxtaposition between the two types of time are evident in the studied novels, nevertheless, each discussed novel employs time in a different manner, providing multiple points of view on the same problem. The introductory part of the thesis outlines possible roots of Woolf's occupation with the concept of time, claiming that the accurate representation of time was not only a literary concern but also a philosophical one. Besides Henri Bergson, key ideas of Paul Ricoeur and William James are mentioned as well. The thesis...
|
|
|
Heroin / Heroine: Addiction as Narrative and Transgression in Junky and Trainspotting
Roušová, Helena ; Horová, Miroslava (advisor) ; Clark, Colin Steele (referee)
The aim of this bachelor thesis is to conduct a comparative analysis of two novels representing transgressive fiction and literature of addiction. These two novels, Junky (1977) (first published as Junkie in 1953) by William Burroughs and Trainspotting (1993) by Irvine Welsh, deal with drug addicts and their transgressive behaviour. They describe the choices the main characters make when they try to break free from the confines of society and their search for identity. The protagonists of both texts try to escape from the rules and expectations society imposes on them, they cross the boundaries of law, morals, and ethics; they transgress. The origins of the term "transgressive fiction" are explained and transgressive techniques and transgressive features in both texts are analysed. The transgressive potential of the subtitle of the first edition of Junkie is explained and moments of undermining middle- class identity and mocking American lifestyle are discussed. In Trainspotting, the transgressive elements involve, among others, the psychological effect of humour in grave and/or graphic transgressive situations and the manipulation of others using intellectual superiority. In both texts, channelling of transgression through violence plays an important part. Violence is seen as the only avenue for...
|
|
|
Symbolism of the Vampire in English Romanticism
Sůvová, Jaroslava ; Horová, Miroslava (advisor) ; Beran, Zdeněk (referee)
The character of the vampire was popularized especially by Bram Stoker's Dracula. However, Dracula was not the first vampire in British literature and his origins can be traced back to Romanticism. This bachelor thesis will look into the issue of symbolism of vampires in the selected works of English Romanticism from the end of the 18th century to the first decades of the 19th century. The main focus will be on the works of Samuel T. Coleridge, John Keats, Lord Byron and John William Polidori and their approach towards the characters of vampires. The aim of this thesis is to determine what is the function of these characters in the works, what exactly they symbolize, and whether they represent something deeper than "the other", "the abject" and "the damned".
|
|
|
The Unconscious in Coleridge
Flanderová, Veronika ; Beran, Zdeněk (advisor) ; Horová, Miroslava (referee)
In the Romantic era, the concept of the Self changes its meaning. There is a shift from the traditional Cartesian consciousness towards perception of the Self as a complex structure including the unconscious. Conceiving of the Self anew struck not only philosophy but thinking about poetry and poetry as well. The thesis focuses on Samuel T. Coleridge, who is considered a major romantic poet and theoretician on the British Isles, and it illustrates the conceptual shift on two of his poems: "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" and "Kubla Khan". At the same time, the thesis attempts at an explication of two complex philosophical problems that widely influenced the debates around the concept of the Self, i.e. the problem of the unity of subject and object, and the epistemological problem of the means of knowledge acquisition. Foreshadowing of the philosophical context allows us to situate the chosen poems in the process of the aforementioned conceptual modification. Key words: S. T. Coleridge, the Self, imagination, "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner", "Kubla Khan"
|
|
|
From Tales of Old Romance to Wormy Circumstance: Aesthetic Tradition, Metamorphosis and Legacy of Keats's Medievalism
Hupcejová, Anna ; Horová, Miroslava (advisor) ; Beran, Zdeněk (referee)
"From Tales of Old Romance to Wormy Circumstance: Aesthetic Tradition, Metamorphosis and Legacy of Keats's Medievalism" My thesis aims to provide an aesthetic reading of Keats's medieval poems and their visual legacy. The selected poems illustrate Keats's developing aesthetics, discussing first on "Calidore, A Fragment" and "Specimen of an Induction to a Poem" from his 1817 debut collection Poems and then the more widely known "Isabella, or A Pot of Basil", "La Belle Dame sans Merci" and "The Eve of St. Agnes". This selection shows the direction of Keats's medievalism that reconsiders tales of "chivalry" ("Specimen", 1) and "Old Romance" ("Isabella", 387) as they become affected by "wormy circumstance" ("Isabella", 385). These later works are interpreted by the Pre-Raphaelites who contribute to the popularisation and eternalisation of Keats's poetry. The two research questions this thesis develops are 1. What is the aesthetic evolution of Keats's medievalism? and 2. How is Keats's later medievalism adapted in Pre- Raphaelite visual art, and to what extent these visual interpretations are loyal to their sources? The discussion is divided into five chapters. In the first I will outline the basic features of the Romantic medieval revival, Keats's early medievalism and the critical state of the art in this...
|
|
| |
|
|
The Development of Lord Byron's Satire
Kopečná, Alena ; Procházka, Martin (advisor) ; Horová, Miroslava (referee)
1 ABSTRACT As the aim of the thesis is to follow the development of Lord Byron's satirical voice, I have chosen to analyze three of his shorter satirical works (the analysis of Don Juan is omitted on purpose, since it has been thoroughly examined by many scholars) significantly different from each other both in form and content, and thus allowing me to map Byron's satirical technique and to contrast the texts. The following works will be analyzed: English Bards and Scotch Reviewers (1809), Beppo: A Venetian Story (1817) and The Vision of Judgment (1822). To understand satire it is essential not only to analyze the texts, but also to put them into context, which will also be part of the discussion. English Bards and Scotch Reviewers - his first published satire - presents Byron's sharp opinion on his contemporaries (including the Lake poets) and serves as the poet's defence against literary reviewers. It follows the tradition of the Neo-Classical satire represented by e.g. Alexander Pope whose legacy is very apparent in English Bards. Beppo marks a new approach - it shows a strong Italian influence - not only is the anecdote set in Italy and thus allows the author to satirize both Italian and English society, but Byron also adopts the form of ottava rima typical of Italian literature. It is argued that the...
|
|
|
"I am no bird; and no net ensnares me": Female Independence in the English Novel 1795 - 1820
Jiránková, Lucie ; Nováková, Soňa (advisor) ; Horová, Miroslava (referee)
In the 1790s, the framework of women's protests against the injustice they faced underwent a distinctive change, which inevitably imprinted itself into contemporary literature. The period discussed in this thesis was chosen to exemplify the beginnings of feminist awakening present in the novels of three women writers: Mary Hays, Mary Wollstonecraft, and Jane Austen. The aim of this thesis is to explore different attitudes towards attaining emotional, intellectual, social, and economic independence, while simultaneously discussing the period's construction of femininity, the discourse of natural rights, the issue of education, romantic love, and sensibility. The introductory chapter describes the historical background and looks closely on the position of women in contemporary society in terms of their familiar and social status, economic dependence, education, character shaping, and their objectification of the marriage market. It also presents the view of women as depicted in conduct manuals and the works of the Jacobin (and also Anti-Jacobin) novelists. Finally, it introduces the novelists in question and elaborates on the influence of Mary Wollstonecraft's Vindication of the Rights of Women on the authors under analysis. The second chapter focuses its attention on the depiction of female independence in...
|
guest ::
RSS feed.