Postfaces in Karel Čapek’s Writings, or ‘Reflections Written in the Margin’ Cover Image

Doslovy ke Spisům Karla Čapka aneb „Úvaha psaná na okraj“
Postfaces in Karel Čapek’s Writings, or ‘Reflections Written in the Margin’

Author(s): Magdaléna Smějsíková
Subject(s): Czech Literature
Published by: Univerzita Karlova v Praze - Filozofická fakulta, Vydavatelství
Keywords: Karel Čapek’s Writings (1980–1995); postface; paratext; textual analysis; 1980s

Summary/Abstract: This study focuses on the postfaces that accompany Karel Čapek’s Writings (published 1980–1995), with an eye to the way they relate to the primary texts. The first part explores the nature of these essays, as well as the topics they address, in relation to Gérard Genette’s theory of paratexts. The author then goes on to examine certain presuppositions in the essays about the experience of reading Čapek’s writings, and how or whether authors of the essays are aware of their role in mediating this experience. In a third and final part of the study, the author examines the demands placed on literature during the period 1948–1989, and how they are reflected in the postfaces.

  • Issue Year: 19/2022
  • Issue No: 40
  • Page Range: 125-142
  • Page Count: 18
  • Language: Czech