Josef Hora
Encyclopedia
Josef Hora was a Czech
poet
.
, Litoměřice District
, Bohemia
in a farmstead, which now houses the Museum of Josef Hora. His father soon sold the house in the village and the family moved to Prague
. In 1896, his parents broke up and Josef with his mother returned first to Dobříň and then to Roudnice where Josef studied at a gymnasium
. Here he tried to write poetry and he even published his experiments in a ladies´ magazine. In 1910, he was enrolled at the Law Faculty of Charles University in Prague. He joined the social democratic party
in 1912 and started writing for its papers and magazines. He became an editor of a local paper where he met Zdenka Janoušková. He married her in 1919 and they had a daughter.
, he started work for Právo lidu (a major social democratic newspaper) and later for Rudé právo
(a newly established communist newspaper) and became a member of the KSČ
. As an editor of the cultural section of Rudé právo he helped a lot of young talented poets and writers not only publish their work but also find jobs or accommodation in Prague. He made a trip to the USSR in 1925 that showed him not only the successes of the new regime (he was part of a delegation) but also its problems with democracy. Hora stopped writing proletarian poetry and in 1929 he and several other Czech writers (Jaroslav Seifert
, Vladislav Vančura
, S.K. Neumann, Marie Majerová, Ivan Olbracht and his wife Helena Malířová) expressed disapproval with the new Stalinist leadership of Klement Gottwald
. They were all expelled from the party and set at variance with ten other left-wing authors (among them Vítězslav Nezval
, Karel Konrád, Julius Fučík and Jiří Weil
). Josef Hora wrote an essay about the situation called Literature and Politics.
He travelled a lot in the 1930s (Estonia
, Slovakia
, Hungary
, Slovenia
).
In 1938, he was one of the initiators of the petition Věrni zůstaneme! eventually signed by more than a million people. Just after Munich Agreement
he became a co-author of a manifest To All the Civilised World (Celému civilizovanému světu). He was one of the seven funeral orators above the coffin of Karel Čapek
. He exchanged more conservative Jaroslav Durych
as a president of the Literary department of Art Forum and from his post helped many people afflicted with war, especially during Heydrich′s protectorship risking his life. In 1939, he wrote to a resistance magazine under the name of Jan Víra. In 1941, he withdrew from public life partly due to intensive intervention of Nazi censorship
in the Czech press and partly due to his illness. Josef Hora died shortly after the liberation of Czechoslovakia
in Prague at the age of 53 and was buried in Slavín, Vyšehrad
.
He was counted among Communist writers in Czechoslovakia (1948–1989) and his disillusionment with Stalinism was concealed.
, closely associated with the literary trends of its time. He always stood apart the modern -isms and literary groups such as Devětsil.
, Sergey Yesenin, Maxim Gorky
, Ilya Erenburg, Leo Tolstoy
, Johann Wolfgang Goethe
Two strophe
s from Máchovské variace (part III, 1936) present one of Hora′s views of the nature of Czech Romantic poet Karel Hynek Mácha
on the occasion of the centenary of his death:
"Shadow" is a poem from the collection Struny ve větru ("Strings in the Wind", 1927), acclaimed by critics (e.g. F.X. Šalda) and poets (e.g. Vladimír Holan
and Jaroslav Seifert
).
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
.
Early life
Josef Hora was born in DobříňDobříň
Dobříň is a village and municipality in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic.The municipality covers an area of , and has a population of 511 ....
, Litoměřice District
Litomerice District
Litoměřice District is one of seven districts located within the Ústí nad Labem Region in the Czech Republic...
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
in a farmstead, which now houses the Museum of Josef Hora. His father soon sold the house in the village and the family moved to 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...
. In 1896, his parents broke up and Josef with his mother returned first to Dobříň and then to Roudnice where Josef studied at a gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
. Here he tried to write poetry and he even published his experiments in a ladies´ magazine. In 1910, he was enrolled at the Law Faculty of Charles University in Prague. He joined the social democratic party
Czech Social Democratic Party
The Czech Social Democratic Party is a social-democratic political party in the Czech Republic.-History:The Social Democratic Czechoslavonic party in Austria was founded on 7 April 1878 in Austria-Hungary representing the Kingdom of Bohemia in the Austrian parliament...
in 1912 and started writing for its papers and magazines. He became an editor of a local paper where he met Zdenka Janoušková. He married her in 1919 and they had a daughter.
Communist career and the schism from the Party
After graduating from a university (1916) with the help of Ivan OlbrachtIvan Olbracht
Ivan Olbracht was a Czech writer, journalist and translator of German prose.The son of writer Antal Stašek, Olbracht studied law and philosophy in Prague and Berlin...
, he started work for Právo lidu (a major social democratic newspaper) and later for Rudé právo
Rudé právo
Rudé právo was the official newspaper of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia....
(a newly established communist newspaper) and became a member of the KSČ
KSC
KSC can mean:* Karlsruher SC, a German football team* Keene State College, a US college that is part of the University System of New Hampshire* Keepers of The Sacred Chao...
. As an editor of the cultural section of Rudé právo he helped a lot of young talented poets and writers not only publish their work but also find jobs or accommodation in Prague. He made a trip to the USSR in 1925 that showed him not only the successes of the new regime (he was part of a delegation) but also its problems with democracy. Hora stopped writing proletarian poetry and in 1929 he and several other Czech writers (Jaroslav Seifert
Jaroslav Seifert
Jaroslav Seifert was a Nobel Prize winning Czech writer, poet and journalist.Born in Žižkov, a suburb of Prague in what was then part of Austria-Hungary, his first collection of poems was published in 1921...
, Vladislav Vančura
Vladislav Vancura
Vladislav Vančura was one of the most important Bohemian writers of the 20th century...
, S.K. Neumann, Marie Majerová, Ivan Olbracht and his wife Helena Malířová) expressed disapproval with the new Stalinist leadership of Klement Gottwald
Klement Gottwald
Klement Gottwald was a Czechoslovakian Communist politician, longtime leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia , prime minister and president of Czechoslovakia.-Early life:...
. They were all expelled from the party and set at variance with ten other left-wing authors (among them Vítězslav Nezval
Vítezslav Nezval
Vítězslav Nezval was one of the most prolific avant-garde Czech writers in the first half of the twentieth century and a co-founder of the Surrealist movement in Czechoslovakia....
, Karel Konrád, Julius Fučík and Jiří Weil
Jirí Weil
Jiří Weil was a Czech writer. He was Jewish. His noted works include the two novels Life with a Star , and Mendelssohn Is on the Roof , as well as many short stories, and other novels....
). Josef Hora wrote an essay about the situation called Literature and Politics.
1930s, against Nazism and Hora's death
In 1933, Hora became an editor of the cultural pages of the České slovo newspaper and he also edited several literary journals. He was elected president of the Society of Czech Writers in 1934 and worked against the fascist menace from outside and inside.He travelled a lot in the 1930s (Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
).
In 1938, he was one of the initiators of the petition Věrni zůstaneme! eventually signed by more than a million people. Just after Munich Agreement
Munich Agreement
The Munich Pact was an agreement permitting the Nazi German annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland. The Sudetenland were areas along Czech borders, mainly inhabited by ethnic Germans. The agreement was negotiated at a conference held in Munich, Germany, among the major powers of Europe without...
he became a co-author of a manifest To All the Civilised World (Celému civilizovanému světu). He was one of the seven funeral orators above the coffin of 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...
. He exchanged more conservative Jaroslav Durych
Jaroslav Durych
Jaroslav Durych was a Czech prose writer, poet, playwright, journalist, and military surgeon.Durych was born in Hradec Králové...
as a president of the Literary department of Art Forum and from his post helped many people afflicted with war, especially during Heydrich′s protectorship risking his life. In 1939, he wrote to a resistance magazine under the name of Jan Víra. In 1941, he withdrew from public life partly due to intensive intervention of Nazi censorship
Censorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
in the Czech press and partly due to his illness. Josef Hora died shortly after the liberation of 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...
in Prague at the age of 53 and was buried in Slavín, Vyšehrad
Vyšehrad cemetery
Established in 1869 on the grounds of Vyšehrad Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, the Vyšehrad cemetery is the final resting place of many composers, artists, sculptors, writers, and those from the world of science and politics...
.
Legacy
A day after his death, Josef Hora was nominated as National Artist (a title that had been granted only to living artists since 1932) and became the first to be awarded posthumously.He was counted among Communist writers in Czechoslovakia (1948–1989) and his disillusionment with Stalinism was concealed.
Poetry
His work created a link with Czech prewar modernismModernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
, closely associated with the literary trends of its time. He always stood apart the modern -isms and literary groups such as Devětsil.
- Básně – 1915
- Strom v květu – 1920
- Itálie – 1925
- Struny ve větru – 1927
- Mít křídla – 1928
- Tvůj hlas – 1930
- Tonoucí stíny – 1933
- Dvě minuty ticha – 1934
- Tiché poselství – 1936
- Máchovská variace – 1936
- Domov – 1938
- Jan houslista – 1939
Translation
Alexander Pushkin, Mikhail LermontovMikhail Lermontov
Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov , a Russian Romantic writer, poet and painter, sometimes called "the poet of the Caucasus", became the most important Russian poet after Alexander Pushkin's death in 1837. Lermontov is considered the supreme poet of Russian literature alongside Pushkin and the greatest...
, Sergey Yesenin, Maxim Gorky
Maxim Gorky
Alexei Maximovich Peshkov , primarily known as Maxim Gorky , was a Russian and Soviet author, a founder of the Socialist Realism literary method and a political activist.-Early years:...
, Ilya Erenburg, Leo Tolstoy
Leo Tolstoy
Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy was a Russian writer who primarily wrote novels and short stories. Later in life, he also wrote plays and essays. His two most famous works, the novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina, are acknowledged as two of the greatest novels of all time and a pinnacle of realist...
, Johann Wolfgang Goethe
A sample of Hora's poetry
"Christ at the parting of the ways" is a poem from the collection Strom v květu ("A Tree in Blossom") published in 1920 which established the author's reputation.Kristus na rozcestí |
Christ at the Parting of the Ways |
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Two strophe
Strophe
A strophe forms the first part of the ode in Ancient Greek tragedy, followed by the antistrophe and epode. In its original Greek setting, "strophe, antistrophe and epode were a kind of stanza framed only for the music," as John Milton wrote in the preface to Samson Agonistes, with the strophe...
s from Máchovské variace (part III, 1936) present one of Hora′s views of the nature of Czech Romantic poet Karel Hynek Mácha
Karel Hynek Mácha
Karel Hynek Mácha was a Czech romantic poet.- Biography :Mácha grew up in Prague, the son of a foreman at a mill. He learned Latin and German in school...
on the occasion of the centenary of his death:
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"Shadow" is a poem from the collection Struny ve větru ("Strings in the Wind", 1927), acclaimed by critics (e.g. F.X. Šalda) and poets (e.g. Vladimír Holan
Vladimír Holan
Vladimír Holan was a Czech poet famous for employing obscure language, dark topics and pessimist views in his poems. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in the late 1960s. He was a member of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia....
and Jaroslav Seifert
Jaroslav Seifert
Jaroslav Seifert was a Nobel Prize winning Czech writer, poet and journalist.Born in Žižkov, a suburb of Prague in what was then part of Austria-Hungary, his first collection of poems was published in 1921...
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Stín |
Shadow |
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