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In most contemporary historical writing the picture of modern life in Habsburg Central Europe is a gloomy story of the failure of rationalism and the rise of protofascist movements. This book tells a different story, focusing on the Czech writers and artists distinguished by their optimistic view of the world in the years before WWI.
And although originally written in Czech, the book was commissioned by Catbird Press and was therefore written with foreign readers in mind; in other words, no prior knowledge of Capek's writings or his milieu is required."--BOOK JACKET.
Welcome to the Essential Novelists book series, were we present to you the best works of remarkable authors. For this book, the literary critic August Nemo has chosen the two most important and meaningful novels of Karel Capek which are The Absolute at Large and The War with the Newts. Karel apek was a Czech writer, playwright and critic. He has become best known for his science fiction, including his novel War with the Newts and play R.U.R., which introduced the word robot. He also wrote many politically charged works dealing with the social turmoil of his time. Influenced by American pragmatic liberalism, he campaigned in favor of free expression and strongly opposed the rise of both fascism and communism in Europe. Novels selected for this book: - The Absolute at Large - The War with the NewtsThis is one ofmany books in the series Essential Novelists. If you liked this book, look for the other titles in the series, we are sure you will like some of the authors.
Capek's best plays, stories, and columns take us from the social contributions of clumsy people to dramatic meditations on mortality and commitment. The Reader includes a new and, at last, complete English translation of R.U.R., the play that introduced the literary robot.
Playful and provocative, irreverent and inspiring, Capek is perhaps the best-loved Czech writer of all time. Novelist and playwright, famed for inventing the word 'robot' in his play RUR, Capek was a vital part of the burgeoning artistic scene of Czechoslovakia of the 1920s and 30s. But it is in his journalism - his brief, sparky and delightful columns - that Capek can be found at his most succinct, direct and appealing. This selection of Capek's writing, translated into English for the first time, contains his essential ideas. The pieces are animated by his passion for the ordinary and the everyday - from laundry to toothache, from cats to cleaning windows - his love of language, his lyrical observations of the world and above all his humanism, his belief in people. His letters to his wife Olga, also published here, are extraordinarily moving and beautifully distinct from his other writings. Uplifting, enjoyable and endlessly wise, Believe in People is a collection to treasure.
"One of the genuine masterpieces of sci-fi." — R. D. Mullen In this satirical and enduringly relevant work of science fiction, the acclaimed Czech author Karel Čapek offers a prescient fable of the benefits and dangers of atomic power. Originally published in 1922, the story is set in a then-futuristic Czechoslovakia of 1943, in which an inventor develops the Karburator, a device with the potential to provide abundant low-cost energy. But the reactor's exciting possibilities are shadowed by its dangerous side effect: instead of carbon dioxide, it emits the Absolute, a spiritual essence that inspires a powerful religious fervor. Greed triumphs over ethics as the inventor and his business p...
"The Mother" is a 1938 anti-war drama written by the famous Czech novelist, Karel Capek. Heavily influenced by the Spanish civil war, the play portrays the relationships between men going off to war, and their families and mothers who want them to stay. It explores fascism and freedom, and conveys the suffering that war brings with it. This volume will appeal to anyone who enjoys war literature, and constitutes a must-read for fans of Capek's seminal work. Karel Capek (1890 - 1938) was an early twentieth century Czech writer who is most remembered for his significant influence on the genre of science fiction. We are republishing this book now in an affordable, modern edition, complete with a specially commissioned new biography of the author.
Karel Capek Fairy Tales is a delightful collection of ten classic children's stories, written by Karel Capek. It is beautifully illustrated throughout, with striking black-and-white images of Karel's brother; Josef Capek. The narratives of 'Capek Fairy Tales' include: 'A Long Tale about a Cat', 'The Dogs' Tale', 'The Birds' Tale', 'The First Bandits' Tale', 'The Water Sprites' Tale', 'The Long Police Tale', and many more. Karel Capek (1890 - 1938) was a Czech writer, best known for his science fiction, including his novel War with the Newts and the play, R. U. R, which introduced the word, 'robot'. He maintained a close relationship with his brother Josef (1887 - 1945), and the two lived and worked together for most of their adult life. Together, the Capeks produced books and plays on themes as diverse as detective stories, full-novels, philosophy, fairy tale collections, theatre plays, and even a book on gardening.
Karel Capek is the most important, the most versatile, as well as the most neglected Czech writer in the 20th century. His plays R.U.R. and From the Life of Insects created a sensation in London in the 1920s. His word "robot" was introduced into the Oxford English Dictionary. As with his numerous plays, his novels, short stories, essays, and travelogues followed in English translations in quick succession until cultural links were broken off by the war. Because of his liberal, anti-war views, Capek's works were blacklisted by the Nazis occupying his homeland, as well as by the Communists later. Both as a writer and as a journalist, Capek sought the truth: in the epistemological sense, how we...