Květomluva Karla Slavoje amerlinga
Karel Slavoj Amerling’s Květomluva

Summary/Abstract: Květomluva (The Language of Flowers), the subject of this article, was the only work of fiction Karel Slavoj Amerling (1807–1884) ever wrote. It comprises his adaptations of folk tales from various regions, which are concerned with the “language of flowers.” In analyzing the text, the author seeks to demonstrate that, by pursuing several aims, Amerling has come up with an unusual, though sometimes unintentionally comical, heterogeneous text. Květomluva is a link between the culturally peripheral code of the “language of flowers” and an attempt at high literature. It is, however, also a link between belles-lettres and scholarly literature. This syncretism, to use Vladimír Macura’s term, fits in with the synthetic character of the culture of the Czech National Revival in general. The author endeavours to demonstrate that the main goal of Květomluva was to posit a system of ancient Slavic mythology as the background to the stories of the book. In keeping with the Romantic approach to folklore, this mythology is presented as a reconstruction of folk tales from various regions, which were considered relics of old myths. In fact, however, it is an attempt to use old Slavic myths to provide evidence of the erstwhile glory of the Czech nation.

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