Page:NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE SURVEY 18; CZECHOSLOVAKIA; THE SOCIETY CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110015-7.pdf/37

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writers of that period were historian Pavel Safarik and Jan Kollar whose allegorical sonnet The Daughter of Slava is a major work of Czech literature. Karel Macha is regarded as one of the greatest Czech poets. His best known work May influenced many other poets. In the late 19th century a more universal literature, influenced by Western Europe, emerged. Novelists Bozena Nemcova and Jaroslav Vrchlicky were known for writing in the new vein. Other outstanding figures of that period were poets Jan Neruda, Svatopluk Cech, and Pavel Orszagh, who wrote under the pen name Hviezdoslav.

In the 20th century, the creation of an independent Czechoslovak state was a great stimulus to literature, and some of the best works were written during the interwar period. Outstanding poets were Josef Kora, Frantisek Halas, Vitezslav Nezval, and Jaroslav Seifert. Distinguished prose authors included Ivan Olbracht, Vladislav Vancura, and Karel Capek, who was also a playwright. The Good Soldier Schweik, a work of international reputation, was written by Jaroslav Hasek during this period. (Franz Kafka, though a native and a resident of Prague, wrote in German and is therefore not usually listed as a Czech writer.)

After a decline during the Nazi and Stalinist eras, literary production increased considerably in the late 1950's and 1960's, and became primarily concerned with people in human situations, indifferent to social ideas and alienated from society. Josef Skvorecky is recognized for several novels, particularly The Cowards and The Emoeke Legend, while Peter Karvas is noted for The Scar, a sharp criticism of Stalinism. Using the same theme, Ladislav Mnacko wrote Belated Reportages and A Taste of Power, which exposed the corruption and hypocrisy of the bureaucracy. During the relative freedom of the 1960's, poets Miroslav Holub and Jiri Kolar commented on the contemporary scene while Ivan Wernisch and Ivan Divis concentrated on the inner world of the individual.

In the 1970's with the reimposition of ideological restrictions, many authors no longer wrote or have gone into exile. However, the regime favors poet Valentin Beniak, and has presented literary prizes to B. Riba, A.Z. Plud, and Jan Solovic.

2. Performing arts

a. Music and dance

As with literature, Czechoslovak music ostensibly derives from the revolution, but in fact it is an integral part of ancient folk life, religion, and Western European musical tradition. Folk music and dance have not only influenced the classical forms of music and ballet, but have survived in pure form as a part of daily life. The music and dance of each region of the country are distinctive and reflect their cultural heritage.

The 16th through the 19th century was a particularly creative period in the development of Czechoslovak music. Classical secular music was introduced from Western Europe in the 16th century, and by the 18th century, a Czechoslovak baroque musical tradition, based on folk melodies and characterized by energetic rhythms, had emerged. Czech musicians were playing in orchestras all over Europe; Jan Ladislav Dusek, a piano virtuoso, was particularly well known throughout the continent. The best known composer of the time was Jan Jakub Ryha. In the 19th century, classical music began to have a mass appeal. Opera was sung in Czech and in 1811 the Prague Conservatoire, the oldest in Central Europe, was established. The most important figures in Czechoslovak music, Bedrich Smetana (1824-84) and Antonin Dvorak (1841-1904), were writing operas, symphonies, and chamber music heard throughout the world. Several other composers, such as Zdenek Fibich, Josef Snk, Josef Foerster, and Vitezslav Novak, were writing lesser known works.

Creativity and experimentation in music continued in the first part of the 20th century with the development of modern atonal music by composers Leos Janacek and Bohuslav Martinu. Other modern composers, who are still living, include Eugen Suchon, who wrote the opera The Whirlwind, and Alois Haba, who is best known for his quarter tone music. Although atonal music and avant-garde experimentation have been discouraged since the Communist revolution, musical expression in contemporary Czechoslovakia is allowed more freedom than the other arts because of its nonideological character. A few young composers continue to write less extreme modern works, which are performed mostly in Eastern Europe. The government condemns most forms of Western popular music as decadent, particularly rock, although jazz is tolerated. The best known Czechoslovak popular singer is Karel Gott who performs in many countries, including the United States.

Classical ballet is a popular form of entertainment, and the Brno ballet company is considered the best in the country. Its repertoire includes internationally known works such as "The Nutcracker's Suite," domestic productions such as Dvorak's "Slavonic Dances," and new Russian presentations such as "The

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