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Fictional political mirroring in Two novels by Vladimír Nabokov
Šindelářová, Martina ; Quinn, Justin (advisor) ; Roraback, Erik Sherman (referee)
The focus of this thesis is to closely analyze two novels by Vladimir Nabokov, namely Invitation to a Beheading and Bend Sinister, and on the basis of close reading as well as detailed examination of critical literature enlighten the circumstances of their creation in the course of author's life and the influences and experiences that might have imprinted in the novels. Although validity of biographical approach may be subjected to question, it proves to be a rather insightful approach concerning the central topic of the thesis and it also provides wider perspective for more accurate understanding of the novels, as it directs the reader from politics towards more philosophical and aesthetical concerns. The thesis should also summarise the main points of Nabokov's artistic theory and clarify what was the main concern of Nabokov's literary works. Invitation to a Beheading, one of the last works Nabokov wrote in his mother tongue, a "dystopian fable" which appeared for the first time in a Russian émigré magazine Sovremenniya Zapiski in 1938, follows the last days of Cincinnatus C., a prisoner sentenced to death for his deviation from the common transparency of his fellow citizens in a world which is a grotesque parody of an absurd political regime, but at the same time this exaggerating portrayal depicts the...
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Authentic existence and the "American dream" in Dreiser's fiction
Černá, Pavlína ; Procházka, Martin (referee) ; Roraback, Erik Sherman (advisor)
If we ask ourselves what makes a nation, the most common answer would probably be the national attributes such as the same language, race, shared territory or history platform. But then how is it in the case of the United States of America? Its language, English, is originally a language from the British Isles, its population consists of many people of different races and cultural backgrounds. It would be quite problematic even to speak about some common past or a specific territory.1 So, what is it then that makes the United States of America? Harvard's Sacvan Bercovitch argues that this "nation is defined by the mythic word America"2 and for him "America is a myth."2 Taking the definition of myths, in the original meaning of the word they are "stories, usually concerning superhumans or gods, which are related to accompany or to explain religious beliefs: they originate far back in the culture of oral societies. A mythology is a system of mythical stories which, taken together, elaborate the religious or metaphysical beliefs of the society."3 Myths are important in functioning as building blocks of the nation, more precisely they "shape the way we see the world, how we think of ourselves, where we look for origins and purpose, including national origins and purpose." Finally, "every great culture has had a...
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The typology of female characters in Teodora Dimova's fictional works
Flemrová, Romana ; Černý, Marcel (advisor) ; Jensterle Doležal, Alenka (referee)
This dissertation in its introduction deals with theoretical view at poetics of literary character and its evolution in 19th and 20th century. These theories are applied at female characters in novels of contemporary Bulgarian writer Teodora Dimova. Subject of research is central female characters in her novels Mothers and Adriana. The last above mentioned novel continues a novel found in heritage of her father - classical writer of Bulgarian literature Dimtăr Dimov. Teodora Dimova is often attacked in Bulgaria that she only profits from her father's fame and that she uses his writing method. This dissertation points out independence of her literary discourse and argue against above mentioned opinions. Key words Dimovova, poetics of female character, contemporary Bulgarian novel
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Visual conception of a film adaptation of the novel A FALL OF MOONDUST by Arthur C. Clark. The science fiction genre and its visual adaptation in examples from world cinematography.
Bouška, Petr ; Nekvasil, Ondřej (advisor) ; Masník, Boris (referee)
The science fiction genre has been popular in filmmaking since it first appeared. It brings views of the world which do not exist. Film is an ideal medium to materialize these fantasy worlds. However, owing to its popularity, the contours of the genre are fading and the term itself is losing its original meaning. Under the heading of science fiction we can, therefore, come cross films which do bring fantastic views and visions, but which have very little to do with science as such. The aim of the theoretical part of this work has been to sift out those film titles which belong to the science fiction genre in the stricter sense of the term science-fiction, focusing on the narrow segment of sci-fi films either taking place in space, or which are marginally related to space. Since this work deals mainly with the visual aspect of sci-fi films, a number of selected titles have been used to introduce their visual appearance. The films have been selected based on my own preference, within the definition of the term science fiction.
The outcome of the theoretical part served as one of the sources for the visuals in the practical part of the work. The practical part provides visual designs for a film adaptation of a novel by A.C. Clarke, A Fall of Moondust. It provides visual designs of scenes and set decorations which aim to stress scientific reliability of depiction and strive to place the film among pieces of high scientific accuracy.
This work may serve the needs of filmmakers interested in a realization of this particular piece, or to those creators, whose task is to adapt a different piece of science-fiction. The latter filmmakers may make use of the references to a number of interesting and inspirational films in the theoretical part of this work.
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Dystopia as a Theme and Narrative Device in the Late 1980s British Fiction
Kopuletý, Jiří ; Chalupský, Petr (advisor) ; Grmela, Josef (referee)
The purpose of this work is to describe the way, in which the theme of dystopia is covered in British literature of the 1980s. Two works will be used for demonstration: London Fields (1989) by Martin Amis and The Child in Time (1987) by Ian McEwan. Apart from the description of the dystopian elements alone, the subject of this thesis will also be the analysis of their use as a narrative device. Principal constituents of this thesis are the theoretical part, where the context is given in which the two works need be approached and the practical part, where the actual analysis is performed.
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La Hojarasca: fictional world and its persons
Budáč, Radoslav ; Vydrová, Hedvika (advisor) ; Fousek, Michal (referee)
This work deals exclusively with the novel La hojarasca, the first novel by Gabriel García Márquez, one of the most prominent living wri ters. In principle, my work may be subdivided into two basic parts: the first part is dedicated to links between the fictional world of the novel and the real world that surrounded it (Chapter 2 - Gabriel García Márquez and His First Novel and Chapter 3 - Reality and the Fictional World); the second is then focused on the novel itself and on its varied interpretations (Chapter 4 - La hojarasca).
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Apocalypse as revelation of truth in modern American fiction: Thomas Pynchon and post-9/11 novel
Olehla, Richard ; Ulmanová, Hana (advisor) ; Procházka, Martin (referee) ; Kolinská, Klára (referee)
English summary This dissertation focuses on the apocalyptic fiction of Thomas Pynchon and analyses various representations of the apocalypse as "revelation" or "unveiling of truth" in its various aspects and manifestations (i.e. paranoia, angels, etc.) in the novels V., The Crying of Lot 49 and Gravity's Rainbow. The theme of apocalypse as a revelation concerning the true nature of the world has a key role to play in the above mentioned novels as well as significance for Pynchon's protagonists. This is so despite the fact that such revelation is depicted as illusory and mostly unattainable, since these novels are all based on the premise that there is no ultimate truth, and therefore, there is nothing that can be revealed. Pynchon's characters get only a revelation of individual truth, and thus theirs is a private apocalypse. When analysing the role of the apocalypse in Western culture, it is also important to analyse the role of millenarian expectations as well as the supposed communication process between God and people, a process depicted as being mediated by angels. The interpretation of God's message can never be precise and perfect, since its meaning is distorted during the communication process. On the rhetorical level, this distortion is equal to metaphor, which in turn causes feelings of paranoia...
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Migrant experience in contemporary black British fiction
Vítková, Veronika ; Nováková, Soňa (advisor) ; Kolinská, Klára (referee)
My work will be concerned with post-WWII migrant experience in Britain. Accordingly, I will focus on issues of identity, hybridity, belonging, diaspora and the concept of home. All these will be exemplified on the basis of selected works by black British writers that will be specified below. Over time, the denotation of the term diaspora - originally meaning the dispersal of the Jews from Israel - increasingly widened. Nowadays, it may refer to people leaving their countries not only for reasons of expulsion and persecution, but also for example in the wake of political strife or war, through conquest and colonisation, as part of global flows of labour or as a result of the capture or removal of a group through slavery.1 According to Avtar Brah, "the question is not simply about who travels but when, how, and under what circumstances?"2 Moreover, it is not possible to create strict categories - types of diaspora - into which particular moving people can be placed. This is also the case of black immigrants in Britain whose ancestors were brought to the Caribbean from Africa for the reasons of slavery. They themselves came to Britain as a result of at least two factors: colonialism and the global flows of labour. As Avtar Brah claims, "[a]t the heart of the notion of diaspora is the image of a journey."3 This...
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