Remembering Jaroslav Hašek

Remembering Jaroslav Hašek

The brilliant author of the immortal Švejk died precisely 100 years ago

Remembering Jaroslav Hašek
Jaroslav Hašek, the Bohemian author who is responsible for the most famous Czech book, "The Good Soldier Svejk", which has been translated into dozens of languages, died 100 years ago.
The Prague-born Jaroslav Hašek, who wrote hundreds of short stories and features, is rightly considered one of the most significant Czech writers, humorists, satirists and journalists. He led a very turbulent life and travelled extensively throughout Europe. During his life, he had many adventures and chronicled many incredible stories, which he drew on for his writing. His crowning achievement was in the 1921 novel The Good Soldier Švejk. This brilliant work, which booksellers refused to sell officially because they considered it "vulgar, unintelligent and rude", was eventually translated into almost 60 languages. Hašek did not have time to finish the second part of the book nor to celebrate his 40th birthday. He died on 3 January 1923 in in Lipnice nad Sázavou in the Vysočina Region.
The Czech Soldier Švejk has been provoking readers for a century

The Czech Soldier Švejk has been provoking readers for a century

One hundred years ago, writer Jaroslav Hašek published a novel whose main character was Josef Švejk. This ordinary soldier remarks on the absurdity of the First World War and mocks the military machine. Humour, political satire, but also his attempts to defy the will of bureaucracy are all still appreciated to this day by readers in both Europe and abroad.
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