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Culprits and Victims in Selected Works of Czech and Sudeten German Authors
Štillerová, Jana ; Mocná, Dagmar (advisor) ; Neumann, Lukáš (referee)
My thesis deals with the literary treatment of the question of guilt for the removal of Germans from the Czech lands after World War II. The perspectives of Czech and Sudeten German authors are often very different, but sometimes very similar, although the authors are separated not only by nationality, but also by several decades of their lives since the treatment of the topic and the time that influenced them. Řezáč's, Durych's, Körner's and Mühlberger's rendering of the subject falls in the same epoch, namely the 1950s, while Gudrun Pausewang, who, although she also lived through the displacement and could have written about it right after World War II, waited forty years to write her book. It is possible that she needed to gain some distance from the traumatic experience in order to collect her thoughts and gain some perspective on the events. The deportation is also dealt with by authors who did not personally experience it: Tučková and Bernig. One might expect Czech authors to have the same view of the issue of guilt, but this is not the case. Durych and Bernig are open, both sides speak, they also describe Germans as victims and call for dialogue and reflection. Řezáč is one-sided, tendentious, expedient, only Germans are guilty, never victims. Tučková too, but in the opposite way. Most...
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Relationship between perceptual and structural variation of human faces: cross-cultural comparison
Pavlovič, Ondřej ; Kleisner, Karel (advisor) ; Třebický, Vít (referee) ; Marcinkowska, Urszula (referee)
ONDŘEJ PAVLOVIČ RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEPTUAL AND STRUCTURAL VARIATION OF HUMAN FACES: CROSS- CULTURAL COMPARISON ABSTRAKT The perception of facial features is a fundamental aspect of human culture, influencing daily interactions and relationships. This thesis explores the cross-cultural dynamics of facial perception. First, the theoretical introduction establishes the centrality of facial perception across cultures. Empirical studies included in this thesis elucidate the convergence and divergence of attractiveness standards among cultures. Additionally, this thesis explores the interplay between facial shape dimorphism, color dimorphism, and typicality across a wide variety of populations. The context of Vietnamese immigrants in the Czech Republic offers a unique lens to study the impact of the sociocultural environment on facial perception and preferences. By analyzing attractiveness assessments provided by Czech Europeans, Czech Vietnamese, and Asian Vietnamese raters for Czech and Vietnamese faces, the studies included in this thesis further elucidate the convergence and divergence of attractiveness standards across these groups. The results of these studies underscore the role of facial averageness as a universally significant trait in attractiveness judgments. Studies added to the appendix explore...
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Getting Back to 'Europe': An Analysis of a Possible Self-Perceived Inadequacy of Czechs Towards the West
Ertin, Sinan ; Německý, Marek (advisor) ; Gulenko, Petr (referee)
This thesis explores the concurrent role of Western hegemony alongside the lasting effects of communism in the challenges faced by post-socialist countries, with a specific focus on the Czech Republic. While communism is commonly seen as the primary cause, we argue that cultural ideas associated with Western hegemony predate communism and have deeply influenced Europe's identity. The thesis is divided into sections that examine the concept of progress throughout history and its relevance to Western European identity, followed by an exploration of hegemony through examples from post-socialist nations, including the Czech Republic. The thesis concludes by addressing potential criticisms and providing an exercise that applies the concepts of hegemony and progress to contemporary Czech society. This analysis aims to present an alternative perspective that acknowledges the simultaneous effects of both communism and Western hegemony in shaping the challenges faced by post-socialist countries during their transition.
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Culprits and Victims in Selected Works of Czech and Sudeten German Authors
Štillerová, Jana ; Mocná, Dagmar (advisor) ; Neumann, Lukáš (referee)
My thesis deals with the literary treatment of the question of guilt for the removal of Germans from the Czech lands after World War II. The perspectives of Czech and Sudeten German authors are often very different, but sometimes very similar, although the authors are separated not only by nationality, but also by several decades of their lives since the treatment of the topic and the time that influenced them. Řezáč's, Durych's, Körner's and Mühlberger's rendering of the subject falls in the same epoch, namely the 1950s, while Gudrun Pausewang, who, although she also lived through the displacement and could have written about it right after World War II, waited forty years to write her book. It is possible that she needed to gain some distance from the traumatic experience in order to collect her thoughts and gain some perspective on the events. The deportation is also dealt with by authors who did not personally experience it: Tučková and Bernig. One might expect Czech authors to have the same view of the issue of guilt, but this is not the case. Durych and Bernig are open, both sides speak, they also describe Germans as victims and call for dialogue and reflection. Řezáč is one-sided, tendentious, expedient, only Germans are guilty, never victims. Tučková too, but in the opposite way. Most...
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The Story of Czech Immigrants in USA and their Legacy from the End of the 19th Century to Present: The Identity and Everyday Life of a Small Town in Minnesota
ZAVADILOVÁ, Eva
The aim of this thesis is to describe the fates, sorrows and joys of Czech peasants (and their descendants) who decided to emigrate to the USA between the second half of the 19th century and the First World War, where they left a legacy that persists to these days. The first part of the thesis is devoted to the general history and knowledge of the emigration of Czechs to the USA, its causes and course. Using collected letters, pamphlets and archival records, it then attempts to reconstruct the journeys of emigrants from Bohemia to their new home across the ocean. The work then describes the various problems that the compatriots had to deal with immediately after landing in the United States, on their way to find available land or to build their homes. The thesis also depicts the efforts to create expatriate communities and societies along with the traditions that Czech immigrants brought with them. The second part focuses on a specific town in Minnesota, but also mentions nearby settlements and towns whose names attest to the Czech origins of their founders. The work focuses on the history of New Prague and its surroundings, associations and traditions that are connected to Czech cultural heritage and still play an important role in maintaining the Czech-American identity of the local population. With the help of the informations from local residents, the thesis seeks to capture and then analyse their perception of their Czech origins and their efforts to maintain awareness of Czech culture and language. Finally, the thesis will focus on specific events and festivals in and around New Prague that serve as evidence of the continuing awareness of Czech culture among Americans.
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English as a Lingua Franca from the perspective of Czech people
SVOBODOVÁ, Magdaléna
This thesis deals with the development and global spread of the English language. The main purpose is to examine the prevailing attitude in Czech society towards English as a language which can be used as a tool of communication with people worldwide. The theoretical part begins with an introduction of the concept English as a lingua franca followed by the historical development of English in the context of historical events which have had fundamental effect on the spread of the language. Furthermore, the author outlines the position of English in the Czech Republic. The practical part uses a quantitative survey to examine whether Czech people are aware of the current position of English in the world and to what extent is the knowledge of the language important to them. The survey also focuses on the level of English in the Czech Republic and the willingness of Czechs to use the language. The results of the survey are compared with theoretical findings.
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Odsun - vyhnání českých Němců z Kaplicka pohledem pamětníků
MUSILOVÁ, Tereza
This thesis follows up the topic of removal - expulsion of Czech Germans living in Czech borderland after the Second World War and it surveys the process of forced displacement in Kaplice and its surroundings in South Bohemia not only with provided data, but mainly with concrete stories. The Theoretical part focuses on the coexistence of Czechs and Germans in Czech territory and describes given historic circumstances which led to its bitter end. It endeavours to outline the process of removal and its consequences for Czechoslovakia. In the Practical part, the concrete stories of contemporary witnesses of the forced displacement complement the information about the process and consequences related to South Bohemian borderland. The main aim of this thesis is to ascertain what the contemporary witnesses think of this affair today.
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Czech-German relations in Cheb during the years 1918-1938
Rybařová, Zuzana ; Županič, Jan (advisor) ; Rybák, David (referee)
This bachelor's thesis is focused on the relations between Czech and German residents in Cheb during the period between the world wars. The investigated issue is placed in a deeper historical context of the position of Chebsko within the Czech lands and the Czech Kingdom. Emphasis is placed on the complicated situation in connection with the province of Deutschböhmen immediately after the establishment of the independent republic on certain significant events related to the increase in the number of the Czech population after the annexation of Chebsko to Czechoslovakia as a result of the post-war peace treaty and on the growing anti-Czech attitudes after 1933 when in Germany Adolf Hitler came to power. The bachelor's thesis is primarily based on a considerable number of literary works, but also on periodicals, archive materials and some other sources. The main aim is to approximate the national conditions in the city which was predominantly German for a long time. KEYWORDS Cheb, Czechs, Germans, Czech-German relations, interwar period
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Mentality of the Oppressed: An Analysis of Czech Inferiority Complex Towards the West
Ertin, Sinan ; Marková, Alena (advisor) ; Německý, Marek (referee)
In this paper, we examine what we see as a Czech feeling of inferiority towards the western nations. Though the so-called post-communist syndrome seems to be a popular way to explain the negative self-perception of Czechs, we will argue that this phenomenon stems from the trauma, which Czechs experienced when transitioning from communism to the globalized capitalistic market. We believe that this trauma was brought about by the rhetoric of ''coming back to Europe'' as it is based on a heritage of orientalism in Europe, in combination with the general mentality of the oppressed, as thematized by the post-colonial theorists such as Franz Fanon or Paulo Freire. To verify our hypothesis, we conducted a survey with 189 respondents from all the regions of the Czech Republic.
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