Umělec v (pre)modernistickém smyslu
An artist in the (pre)modernist sense

The reception of Mácha’s work in post-1858 literary journalism

Summary/Abstract: This study seeks an answer to the question when and how the Czech romantic K. H. Mácha (1810–1836) started to be seen as a “modern” poet who could inspire authors writing decades after his death. Traditionally, Mácha’s well-known influence among Czech decadents, symbolists, and impressionists of the 1890s and the 1900s leads critics to the assumption that the “real” cult of Mácha occured as late as in correspondence with Czech Modernism. However, it is also well-known that Mácha’s work was publicly acknowledged no later than in the 1850s, demonstrably e.g. by the “Máj” almanac in 1858, then by the publication of Mácha’s complete works in 1861, and by the output of poetry influenced by Mácha’s legacy in the following years. The study proves that the image of “modern” Mácha as the first Czech poet to achieve the autonomy of art already existed between 1860 and 1890, and that Mácha’s artistic reputation grew constantly throughout the second half of the 19th century. This argument is based on a vast amount of evidence, mostly taken from literary journalism and criticism between 1858 and1910 (the latter year seeing the centenary of Mácha’s birth).

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