Egon Bondy
Encyclopedia
Egon Bondy, born Zbyněk Fišer, (January 20, 1930, Prague
– April 9, 2007, Bratislava
) was a Czech philosopher, writer, and poet, one of the main personalities of the Prague underground.
In the late 1940s, Bondy was active in a surrealistic group. From 1957 to 1961, he studied philosophy and psychology at Charles University in Prague.
From the 1960s he was one of the main figures of the Prague underground, writing texts for The Plastic People of the Universe
. His non-conformism brought him into conflict with the communist regime in occupied Czechoslovakia
. His works were circulated only as samizdat
.
Bondy was always interested in the study of Karl Marx
and in the criticism of both contemporary capitalism
and totalitarian socialism
. His philosophical work concerns ontological
and related ethical problems. He attempts to show the relevance of ontology without any substance or grounding.
Bondy's work is very distinctive. He was a close friend of Bohumil Hrabal
, another Prague writer, and is one of the most influential Czech intellectuals of the 20th century.
In the 1990s Bondy moved from Prague
to Bratislava
, Slovakia.
The scope of his works is exceptionally broad: he published about thirty books of poetry, ranging from epic poems in early 1950s to meditative philosophical works in the 1980s. He also published about twenty novels, most of them dealing with the topic of a society or an individual in crisis, or a crisis in the relationship between an individual and his or her community. Despite the deep, existential background of his work, the texts are fresh and entertaining. He himself most valued his philosophical works. He published a history of philosophy. However, this work is criticized by authorities within the field for its subjective deformation of the topic [lacks citation].
Bondy is a name drawn from the great Czech writer Karel Čapek
in his War with the Newts
. (However, it has nothing to do with Egon Bondy for Zbyněk Fišer started to use this Jewish pseudonym in 1949 when he prepared a surrealistic anthology. The authors of the texts in the anthology chose a Jewish pseudonym each.)
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
– April 9, 2007, Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
) was a Czech philosopher, writer, and poet, one of the main personalities of the Prague underground.
In the late 1940s, Bondy was active in a surrealistic group. From 1957 to 1961, he studied philosophy and psychology at Charles University in Prague.
From the 1960s he was one of the main figures of the Prague underground, writing texts for The Plastic People of the Universe
The Plastic People of the Universe
The Plastic People of the Universe is a rock band from Prague, Czech Republic. It was the foremost representative of Prague's underground culture . This avant-garde group went against the grain of the Communist regime and due to its non-conformism often suffered serious problems such as arrests...
. His non-conformism brought him into conflict with the communist regime in occupied Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. His works were circulated only as samizdat
Samizdat
Samizdat was a key form of dissident activity across the Soviet bloc in which individuals reproduced censored publications by hand and passed the documents from reader to reader...
.
Bondy was always interested in the study of Karl Marx
Karl Marx
Karl Heinrich Marx was a German philosopher, economist, sociologist, historian, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. His ideas played a significant role in the development of social science and the socialist political movement...
and in the criticism of both contemporary capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
and totalitarian socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
. His philosophical work concerns ontological
Ontology
Ontology is the philosophical study of the nature of being, existence or reality as such, as well as the basic categories of being and their relations...
and related ethical problems. He attempts to show the relevance of ontology without any substance or grounding.
Bondy's work is very distinctive. He was a close friend of Bohumil Hrabal
Bohumil Hrabal
Bohumil Hrabal was a Czech writer, regarded as one of the best writers of the 20th century.- Life and work :...
, another Prague writer, and is one of the most influential Czech intellectuals of the 20th century.
In the 1990s Bondy moved from Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
to Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
, Slovakia.
The scope of his works is exceptionally broad: he published about thirty books of poetry, ranging from epic poems in early 1950s to meditative philosophical works in the 1980s. He also published about twenty novels, most of them dealing with the topic of a society or an individual in crisis, or a crisis in the relationship between an individual and his or her community. Despite the deep, existential background of his work, the texts are fresh and entertaining. He himself most valued his philosophical works. He published a history of philosophy. However, this work is criticized by authorities within the field for its subjective deformation of the topic [lacks citation].
Bondy is a name drawn from the great Czech writer Karel Čapek
Karel Capek
Karel Čapek was Czech writer of the 20th century.-Biography:Born in 1890 in the Bohemian mountain village of Malé Svatoňovice to an overbearing, emotional mother and a distant yet adored father, Čapek was the youngest of three siblings...
in his War with the Newts
War with the Newts
War with the Newts , also translated as War with the Salamanders, is a 1936 satirical science fiction story by Czech author Karel Čapek. It concerns the discovery in the Pacific of a sea-dwelling race, an intelligent breed of newts, who are initially enslaved and exploited...
. (However, it has nothing to do with Egon Bondy for Zbyněk Fišer started to use this Jewish pseudonym in 1949 when he prepared a surrealistic anthology. The authors of the texts in the anthology chose a Jewish pseudonym each.)
See also
- List of Czech writers
- Obituary in the New York Times by Douglas MartinDouglas MartinDouglas Martin may refer to:*Douglas Martin , Canadian leader in the Bahá'í Faith*Douglas J. Martin , New Zealand leader in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints*R...
, published 15 April 2007 - Obituary in The Independent (UK) by Marcus Williamson, published 17 April 2007
- Obituary in The Times (UK), published 18 April 2007
- Obituary in The Guardian (UK) by Ken Hunt, published 20 April 2007
External links
- We are again at the very beginning - An interview with Egon Bondy published in the Slovak weekly Slovo and daily Blisty in 2003