The Correspondence of Jaroslav Kvapil with Alois, Vilém, and Božena Mrštík Cover Image

Korespondence Jaroslava Kvapila s Vilémem Mrštíkem, Aloisem Mrštíkem a Boženou Mrštíkovou
The Correspondence of Jaroslav Kvapil with Alois, Vilém, and Božena Mrštík

Author(s): Michaela Kuthanová, Marta Dandová
Subject(s): Literary Texts
Published by: Památník národního písemnictví
Keywords: Vilém Mrštík; Alois Mrštík; Jaroslav Kvapil; National Theatre; Czech drama in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; the play Maryša; the play Anežka

Summary/Abstract: This collection of correspondence contains 66 items written between 1894 and 1920, and now deposited in the Literature Archive of the Museum of Czech Literature, Prague. It follows on, in particular, from a 1978 edition of correspondence between the Mrštík brothers, edited by Rudolf Havel. The new collection adds to the picture of the artistic development of Vilém Mrštík (1863–1912) in the last stage of his life. In some of the letters, Vilém explains his problematic relationship with Máj (May), a Czech writers’ association, but the main topic of the correspondence is the plays written by the brothers. The correspondence between their producer and the authors adds to our knowledge about the staging of Maryša (1894) and about the origin of the play Anežka (1912) and the efforts to get it produced. (It premièred only after Vilém’s suicide). The letters also provide an authentic report on views about Vilém Mrštík’s art and his attitudes, which originated in theories of French Naturalism and Russian Realism and emphasized the importance of folk art for the appearance of the art of a nation. Mrštík’s letters provide us with his perceptions of contemporaneous life in the arts and his views on contemporary Czech society.

  • Issue Year: 2013
  • Issue No: 45
  • Page Range: 189-254
  • Page Count: 66
  • Language: Czech