Giving an account of oneself through the eyes of the other: On sincerity in Bohumil Hrabal’s autobiographical trilogy
Giving an account of oneself through the eyes of the other: On sincerity in Bohumil Hrabal’s autobiographical trilogy

Summary/Abstract: The study focuses on the construction of sincerity in Bohumil Hrabal’s In-House Weddings trilogy (1986–1987). In this prose series, Hrabal recounts several decades of his marriage as seen through the eyes of his wife Eliška, placing her in the position of protagonist and first-person narrator. By staging the text as a meditated confession of this kind, Hrabal not only produces an uncompromising autobiography, but also reflects on the identity of his life partner. To grasp this dialectical aspect of the text, we turn to Judith Butlerʼs concept of “giving an account of oneself ”. This allows us to see that, apart from serving as a narrative device, Hrabal’s peculiar handling of perspective is an expression of a certain ethical stance, underscoring the state of being recognized by another, while also recognizing them, as a condition of a truthful, authentic existence.

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