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Impact of Emerson's Transcendentalism on the Development of the New Age Movement . An Inquiry into Parallels as a Way to Determine the Influence
Rabochová, Pavlína ; Ženíšek, Jakub (advisor) ; Grmela, Josef (referee)
This thesis provides details about historical background of American Transcendentalism, a theological, philosophical and literary tradition of the first half of the nineteenth century in United States and of New Age religion originating roughly at the turn of the same century and maturing in the 1970's in a form of the New Age movement. The work focuses on the influence of American Transcendentalism as one of the shaping factors, which contributed to the emergence of New Age. The attention is placed primarily on the work of Ralph Waldo Emerson. Through a detailed analysis of selected Emerson's essays parallels are drawn between the beliefs held by the Transcendentalists, mainly Emerson, and general beliefs shared with the New Age community. Following the historical development of both traditions, we discover the point of convergence, namely the New Thought movement originating in the second half of the nineteenth century.
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Naturalism in selected works of John Steinbeck
Bartáková, Irena ; Ženíšek, Jakub (advisor) ; Grmela, Josef (referee)
This diploma thesis deals with naturalistic features in selected works of John Steinbeck. The theoretical part gives a general outline of Naturalism, of its birth and background, as well as of the influences which helped to form this movement. Special attention is paid to the American Naturalism. The practical part is focused on the analysis of two novels by John Steinbeck - The Grapes of Wrath and In Dubious Battle - from the naturalistic point of view. Its aim is to trace naturalistic features in the novels and thus to find evidence that these are typical novels of American Naturalism, in terms of their themes and ways of elaboration.
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Social Themes in In-Yer -Face Theatre Plays
Sedláková, Jitka ; Chalupský, Petr (advisor) ; Ženíšek, Jakub (referee)
In-Yer-Face theatre is a new kind of theatre which was established in Britain in the 1990s. With it, a new sensibility arrived into the theatre. The first part of this diploma thesis is aimed to bring to the reader's attention the concept of In-Yer-Face Theatre and investigate the life and work of two of its playwrights. The main attention will be paid to two plays, Blasted (1995) by Sarah Kane and Shopping and Fucking (1995) by Mark Ravenhill who belong to the major representatives of In-Yer-Face Theatre of the socalled 'New Writing'. The in-yer-face themes in the context of 1990s British theatre will be demonstrated on these plays.
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Masculine Identity in Chuck Palahniuk's Early Novels
Ondrášek, Jakub ; Ženíšek, Jakub (advisor) ; Chalupský, Petr (referee)
This MA thesis deals with the masculine identity of the three main male characters of Chuck Palahniuk's early novels Fight Club, Survivor and Choke. It consists of two parts. The first theoretical part briefly explores anthropological and sociological notions of masculinity, with the focus on the manhood in the contemporary USA. As such it serves as the theoretical basis for the second part of literary interpretation. There the masculine identity of the three main characters is discussed. As all the three characters experience the same development of masculine identity, the interpretation advances along this progress. Its stages are identity crisis, turning to the traditional male strategies, rejecting those strategies and searching the basis of one's identity in a personal relationship.
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"...and all the men and women merely players." Application of Game Theory on Jane Austen' s Narrative
Starobová, Eva ; Ženíšek, Jakub (advisor) ; Chalupský, Petr (referee)
Game theory is a branch of applied mathematics, whose main aim is to analyze various decision situations and predict their outcomes. This work applies game theory on three Jane Austen novels, namely Emma, Persuasion, and Pride and Prejudice. Analyzing the main topic in the plots (courtship, engagement and marriage) from the point of view of game theory and establishing the payoff matrices for each game described in the novel, we can observe several parallels in the three novels and the specifics of each of them. Respecting the limitations given by the nature of our source of information, this overall analysis allows us to reach conclusion about the predominant characteristics of the novels and proves applicability of game theory on literary work and theory.
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Role of the past, memory and history in the works of Kazuo Ishiguro
Fišerová, Veronika ; Chalupský, Petr (advisor) ; Ženíšek, Jakub (referee)
The aim of the thesis is to explore the ways Kazuo Ishiguro uses the past, memory and history in his works. They will be described in the context of five novels: A Pale View of Hills, An Artist of the Floating World, The Remains of the Day, When We Were Orphans and Never Let Me Go. The three phenomena are considered Ishiguro's main areas of interest and, therefore, the thesis tries to answer why he is so fascinated with them and whether they serve to convey a particular message. A special attention will be drawn to what seems to be central for Kazuo Ishiguro - going back to his characters' early years and pointing out the key moments that shaped their lives, attitudes and opinions in the future. The focus within the defined field of interest will be on the position of an individual in historical events, themes of guilt, loss, self-deception and regret.
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Shooting Jane Austen: Romantic and realistic imagery in two recent film adaptations of Austen's Pride and Prejudice
Švábová, Šárka ; Ženíšek, Jakub (advisor) ; Chalupský, Petr (referee)
This diploma thesis is concerned with the comparison o f Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice and its two film adaptations. Special attention is paid to the recent tendencies o f film-makers to put emphasis on the romantic aspects o f the main plotline, to tone down the realistic background and social satire o f the story, and to favour minimalism, which often results in psychological reductionism o f the characters. The analysis is divided into two parts. The first part concentrates on the depiction o f individual characters, particularly their personality reflected in their behaviour. The second part examines the storylines o f the two adaptations in terms o f fidelity to the original; dealing separately with scenes which were omitted and scenes which were included in both versions. The thesis tries to find sufficient evidence o f the tendencies mentioned above in order to illustrate the growing trend o f these tendencies.
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Finding of Direct Line in Possibility Dwelling : recurrent social themes in Emily Dickinson's poetry
Borovičková, Hana ; Grmela, Josef (referee) ; Ženíšek, Jakub (advisor)
The thesis explores recurrent social themes in Emily Dickinson's poetry and letters. The main objective of the thesis is to present Emily Dickinson as a poet who was highly interested in social issues. The research is based on the analysis of poems and letters and it is supported by academic works by recognized Emily Dickinson scholars. In particular, the explored areas are "Publication and Role of Poet", "Effects of Civil War on Society", "Religion and Faith", and "Interpersonal Relationships". The research revealed that the areas share common features. On one hand, there is a strong feeling of seclusion from the society presented in Dickinson's poems, but, on the other hand, a reader can appreciate the poems for their brilliant observation and description of the social environment that was surrounding the poet. Dickinson may have been physically isolated from the society, but she understood its problems with clarity that could have been envied by many her contemporaries.
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Success and failure in selected novels of Theodore Dreiser
Novotný, Josef ; Ženíšek, Jakub (referee) ; Grmela, Josef (advisor)
Diplomová práce Success and Failure in Selected Novels of Theodore Dreiser analyzuje vybrané romány Theodora Dreisera s přihlédnutím k motivu vzestupu a pádu. Dále se tato práce věnuje otázce jak se Dreiserova životní zkušenost odráží v jeho díle. Srovnávány jsou romány Sister Carrie, Jennie Gerhardt, The "Genius", An American Tragedy, and The Trilogy of Desire (The Financier, The Titan, The Stoic) s autobiografiemi Dawn a Newspaper Days. Práce odhaluje skutečné předlohy románových postav, zkoumá jejich vzestupy a pády, a zkoumá Dreiserův pohled na svět, zejména jeho sociální postoje. Dochází k závěru, že Dreiser skrze své postavy, vykreslené jako Nietzschovsky sobecká a atavistická stvoření, zpochybňoval tradiční americkou literární koncepci, tradiční morálku i principy demokracie.
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