CJL02 Czech Literature from the Beginnings to the 18th century for Bachelor

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2025
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Marie Hanzelková, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Jakub Sichálek, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Marie Hanzelková, Ph.D.
Department of Czech Literature – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Mgr. Veronika Bromová, Ph.D.
Supplier department: Department of Czech Literature – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
Mon 16:00–17:40 D33, except Mon 21. 4. to Sun 27. 4.
Prerequisites (in Czech)
CJL01 Introduc. into Czech Lit.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
The capacity limit for the course is 15 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 10/15, only registered: 0/15, only registered with preference (fields directly associated with the programme): 0/15
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
Main objectifs of the course are:
- to introduce problems of the study of old Czech literature;
- to acquire the basic knowledge concerning literary history of that period, development of the genre system and functions of old Czech literature;
- to become familiar with an essential amount of scientific literature and its methods;
- to become familiar with interpretative methods suitable for an analysis of old literature;
- to apply acquired knowledge and skills on the creation of own scientific texts.
The contents of the seminars are readings and interpretations of the selected works, included in the period of old Czech literature. By dealing with the particular texts the students should learn the features of this wide period of Czech literature, the features of the various works and the principles of their formation. The particular texts are chosen with regards to several aspects: the chronological aspect (9th –18th century: literature of the Middle Ages, literature of Hussite period, Humanism literature and Baroque literature, plus proposals of possible periodization); the genre aspect (hagiography, historiography, lyric poetry, epos, medieval dispute, play, tractate, travels, hymnography, homiletics etc.); the linguistic aspect (works originally written in old Slavonic language, Latin and German will be read in Czech translantions) and the functional aspect (spiritual and secular literature, satirical works, scientific and scholarly works, didactic works, amusing works etc.) The works should be perceived and interpreted on the basis of the period aesthetic norms and cultural and historic context. A part of the seminar programme is devoted to the compulsory reading.
Learning outcomes
After completing the course the student will be able to:
- acquire basic knowledge of the literary development of the given period;
- characterize and summarize important characteristics of the development of the genre system and the functions of the older literature;
- analyze the submitted texts on the basis of adopted methods and procedures;
- write a scientific text on the subject corresponding with the degree of the student´s knowledge.
Syllabus
  • 1. Introduction.
  • 2. Medieval hagiography.
  • 3. Medieval drama (religious comedy).
  • 4. Medieval historiography ("chronicle").
  • 5. Medieval secular love poetry.
  • 6. Medieval dispute.
  • 7. Literature of the Hussite period (tendentious works).
  • 8. Humanism literature in Latin.
  • 9. Early modern dramatic texts.
  • 10. Jan Amos Comenius – turn of Renaissance and Baroque and the exile literature.
  • 11. Baroque spiritual poetry.
  • 12. Baroque preaching.
  • 13. Popular literature of the 17th and 18th c.
Literature
    required literature
  • LEHÁR, Jan. Česká literatura od počátků k dnešku. 2., dopl. vyd. Praha: Lidové noviny, 2004, 1078 s. ISBN 8071063088. info
  • GALÍK, Josef, Erik GILK, Petr HORA, Jana KOLÁŘOVÁ, Petr KOMENDA, Radek MALÝ, Eduard PETRŮ, Martin PODIVÍNSKÝ, Jan SCHNEIDER, Jiří SKALIČKA and Alena ŠTĚRBOVÁ. Panorama české literatury. Edited by Lubomír Machala. Vydání první. Praha: Knižní klub, 2015, 607 stran. ISBN 9788024248189. info
    recommended literature
  • VILIKOVSKÝ, Jan. Písemnictví českého středověku. Vydání první. V Praze: Universum, 1948, 255 stran. URL info
  • NECHUTOVÁ, Jana. Latinská literatura českého středověku do roku 1400. Praha: Vyšehrad, 2000, 368 pp. ISBN 80-7021-305-1. info
  • KOPECKÝ, Milan. Český humanismus. Praha: Melantrich, 1988. info
  • KOPECKÝ, Milan. Nic stálého přítomného : k literárnímu baroku. Vyd. 1. Brno: Masarykova univerzita, 1999, 145 s. ISBN 8021022272. URL info
    not specified
  • LEHÁR, Jan. Nejstarší česká epika : Dalimilova kronika, Alexandreida, první veršované legendy. Translated by Rudolf Mertlík. Vyd. 1. Praha: Vyšehrad, 1983, 230 s. URL info
  • VAŠICA, Josef. České literární baroko : příspěvky k jeho studiu [Vašica, 1995]. Vyd. 2. [Brno]: Atlantis, 1995, 349 s. ISBN 80-7108-123-X. info
  • ŠKARKA, Antonín. Půl tisíciletí českého písemnictví. Edited by Emanuel Macek - Pavel Spunar - Jan Lehár. Vyd. 1. Praha: Odeon, 1986, 502 s. URL info
  • KOLÁR, Jaroslav. Návraty bez konce : studie k starší české literatuře. Edited by Lenka Jiroušková. Vyd. tohoto souboru 1. Brno: Atlantis, 1999, 358 s. ISBN 8071081906. info
  • PETRŮ, Eduard. Vzdálené hlasy :studie o starší české literatuře. Olomouc: Votobia, 1996, 443 s. ISBN 80-7198-162-1. info
  • MALURA, Jan. Meditace a modlitba v literatuře raného novověku. Vydání první. Ostrava: Ostravská univerzita v Ostravě, 2015, 278 stran. ISBN 9788074646980. info
  • WÖGERBAUER, Michael, Petr PÍŠA, Petr ŠÁMAL and Pavel JANÁČEK. V obecném zájmu : cenzura a sociální regulace literatury v moderní české kultuře 1749-2014. Vydání 1. Praha: Academia, 2015, 863 stran. ISBN 9788088069119. info
  • PETRŮ, Eduard. Zrcadlo skutečnosti :kniha o středověké, renesanční a barokní parodii. Vyd. 1. Praha: ISV, 2002, 171 s. ISBN 80-85866-90-0. info
  • FROLCOVÁ, Věra, Pavel KOSEK, Hana BOČKOVÁ, Markéta HOLUBOVÁ and Tomáš SLAVICKÝ. Má svou známou notu : Kramářské písně v ústní tradici Moravy a Slezska (“To a Familiar Melody” : Czech Broadside Ballads in the Oral Tradition of Moravia and Silesia). Brno: Host, 2022, 661 pp. ISBN 978-80-275-1379-6. info
Teaching methods
The method of the course is based on work with texts – explication, reading, interpretation and discussion.
Assessment methods
Requirements for taking an exam are three written works and passing a discussion about books from the reading list. Oral/Written examination aimed at testing the student’s insight into the main methodologies of the discipline, or in the work of the main representatives of selected period, and at checking the student’s ability to connect relevant facts into logical relations.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
Information on completion of the course: Seminář souvisí s doporuč. přednáškou ze st. čes. lit.
The course is taught annually.
Information on course enrolment limitations: V semestru jaro 2025 je předmět určen převážně studentům, kteří na podzim 2024 nemohli předmět absolvovat kvůli pobytu na Erasmu.
Teacher's information
To prepare for the exam, it is advisable to work with the study materials in IS and with one of the compendia such as Panorama české literatura 1 (2015) or Česká literatura od počátků k dnešku (latest ed. 2021; first published in 1997 as Lehár, J. -- Stich, A. Česká literatura 1). Other titles s. in the annotated list of basic lit. in IS.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2023, Spring 2024, Autumn 2024.
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