Jaroslav Seifert (; 23 September 1901 – 10 January 1986) was a Czech writer, poet and journalist. Seifert was awarded the 1984 Nobel Prize in Literature "for his poetry which endowed with freshness, sensuality and rich inventiveness provides a liberating image of the indomitable spirit and versatility of man".

Biography

Born in Žižkov, a suburb of

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

in what was then part of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, Seifert's first collection of poems was published in 1921. He was a member of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (KSČ), the editor of a number of communist newspapers and magazines – ''Rovnost'', ''Sršatec'', and ''Reflektor'' – and the employee of a communist publishing house. During the 1920s he was considered a leading representative of the Czechoslovak artistic avant-garde. He was one of the founders of the journal

Devětsil The Devětsil () was an association of Czech avant-garde artists, founded in 1920 in Prague. From 1923 on there was also an active group in Brno. The movement discontinued its activities in 1930 (1927 in Brno). Founded as U. S. Devětsil (Uměleck ...

. In March 1929, he and six other writers left the KSČ after signing a manifesto protesting against Bolshevized Stalinist-influenced tendencies in the new leadership of the party. He subsequently worked as a journalist in the social-democratic and trade union press during the 1930s and 1940s. In 1949 Seifert left journalism and began to devote himself exclusively to literature. His poetry was awarded important state prizes in 1936, 1955, and 1968, and in 1967 he was designated National Artist. He was the official Chairman of the Czechoslovak Writer's Union for several years (1968–70). In 1977 he was one of the signatories of Charter 77 in opposition to the government of the

Czechoslovak Socialist Republic The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, ČSSR, formerly known from 1948 to 1960 as the Czechoslovak Republic or Fourth Czechoslovak Republic, was the official name of Czechoslovakia from 1960 to 29 March 1990, when it was renamed the Czechoslovak ...

. Seifert was awarded the

Nobel Prize in Literature ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , caption = , awarded_for = Outstanding contributions in literature , presenter = Swedish Academy , holder = Annie Ernaux (2022) , location = Stockholm, Sweden , year = 1901 , ...

in 1984. Due to bad health, he was not present at the award ceremony, and so his daughter accepted the Nobel Prize in his name. Even though it was a matter of great importance, there was only a brief remark of the award in the state-controlled media. He died in 1986, aged 84, and was buried at the municipal cemetery in Kralupy nad Vltavou (where his maternal grandparents originated from). His burial was marked by a high presence of secret police, who tried to suppress any hint of dissent on the part of mourners.Dissidents And Authorities Say Farewell To Nobel Laureate
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Works

* ''Město v slzách'' (City in Tears, 1921) * ''Samá láska'' (Nothing but Love / Sheer Love, 1923) * ''Na vlnách TSF'' (On Wireless Waves / On the Waves of TSF, 1925) * ''Slavík zpívá špatně'' (The Nightingale Sings Badly/Poorly, 1926) * ''Básně'' (Poems, 1929) * ''Poštovní holub'' (Carrier Pigeon, 1929) * ''Hvězdy nad Rajskou zahradou'' (Stars Above the Garden of Eden, 1929) * ''Jablko z klína'' (An Apple from the Lap, 1933) * ''Ruce Venušiny'' (The Hands of Venus, 1936) * ''Zpíváno do rotačky'' (Songs for the Rotary Press, 1936) * ''Jaro, sbohem'' (Goodbye, Spring, 1937) * ''Zhasněte světla'' (Turn Off the Lights, 1938) * ''Vějíř Boženy Němcové'' (Božena Němcová's Fan, 1940) * ''Světlem oděná'' (Robed in Light, 1940) * ''Kamenný most'' (The Stone Bridge, 1944) * ''Přilba z hlíny'' (A Helmetful of Earth, 1945) * ''Ruka a plamen'' (The Hand and the Flame, 1948) * ''Šel malíř chudě do světa'' (The Painter Walks Poor into the World, 1949) * ''Píseň o Viktorce'' (A Song About Victorka, 1950) * ''Maminka'' (Mother, 1954) * ''Chlapec a hvězdy'' (The Boy and the Stars, 1956) * ''Praha a Věnec sonetů'' (A Wreath of Sonnets, 1956). English translation by Jan Křesadlo * ''Zrnka révy'' (Grapeseeds, 1965) * ''Koncert na ostrově'' (Concert on the Island, 1965) * ''Halleyova kometa'' (Halley's Comet, 1967) * ''Odlévání zvonů'' (The Casting of the Bells, 1967) * ''Kniha o Praze'' (A Book about Prague, 1968) * ''Morový sloup'' (The Plague Column, 1968–1970) * ''Deštník z Picadilly'' (An Umbrella from Piccadilly, 1979) * ''Všecky krásy světa'' (All the Beauties of the World, 1979, 1981?) * ''Býti básníkem'' (To Be a Poet, 1983)

References

External links

*
Nobel biography
*

of Seifert's crown of sonnets by Jan Křesadlo
The Poetry of Jaroslav Seifert
Translated by Edward icOsers
Jaroslav Seifert – Poetry

Jaroslav Seifert eNotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Seifert, Jaroslav 1901 births 1986 deaths Writers from Prague Czech poets Czech male poets Czech Communist poets Charter 77 signatories Nobel laureates in Literature People from the Kingdom of Bohemia Austro-Hungarian Nobel laureates Czechoslovak Nobel laureates Sonneteers Recipients of the Order of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk 20th-century Czech poets Communist Party of Czechoslovakia members