Karel Hlaváček (August 24, 1874 in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

– June 15, 1898 in Prague) was a Czech Symbolist and Decadent

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

and artist. Hlaváček was born into a working class household in the Prague neighborhood of Libeň. He published his poetic works and

art criticism Art criticism is the discussion or evaluation of visual art. Art critics usually criticize art in the context of aesthetics or the theory of beauty. A goal of art criticism is the pursuit of a rational basis for art appreciation but it is quest ...

s in the journal ''Moderní revue'' (''Modern review''). Hlavacek poems were notable for their musicality and phonic homonymy, and contained decadent interests of eroticism and decay, particularly with the symbolic use of his aristocratic vampire attacking young virgins in the poem ''Upír''. Hlaváček was also active as a sketch artist and created illustrations for the poems of Arnošt Prochazka. He was and heavily inspired by

Edvard Munch Edvard Munch ( ; ; 12 December 1863 – 23 January 1944) was a Norwegian painter. His 1893 work ''The Scream'' has become one of Western art's most acclaimed images. His childhood was overshadowed by illness, bereavement and the dread of inher ...

, creating hallucinatory drawings, both in Symbolist and early expressionist style, suggesting anxieties about sex and religion. He was the founding member and the first president of the nationalist and athletic ''Sokol'' group in the Prague suburb of Libeň. Hlaváček died of

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

, aged 23. There is a memorial plaque dedicated to the poet in U kříže, near his home in Old Libeň.

Works

* ''Sokolské sonety'' (''

Sonnet A sonnet is a fixed poetic form with a structure traditionally consisting of fourteen lines adhering to a set Rhyme scheme, rhyming scheme. The term derives from the Italian word ''sonetto'' (, from the Latin word ''sonus'', ). Originating in ...

s of falcon'' or ''Sonnets of Sokol'') (1895) * ''Pozdě k ránu'' (''Late before morning'') - Czech Symbolist book of poetry, written with musicality and unusual

rhyme A rhyme is a repetition of similar sounds (usually the exact same phonemes) in the final Stress (linguistics), stressed syllables and any following syllables of two or more words. Most often, this kind of rhyming (''perfect rhyming'') is consciou ...

s (1896) * ''Mstivá kantiléna'' (''Vindictive cantilena'') - his most important work, a Decadent book, a poetic interpretation of the

Geuzen ''Geuzen'' (; ; ) was a name assumed by the confederacy of Calvinist Dutch nobles, who from 1566 opposed Spanish rule in the Netherlands. The most successful group of them operated at sea, and so were called ''Watergeuzen'' (; ; ). In the Eigh ...

(1898) * ''Žalmy'' (''Psalms'') - unfinished and published posthumously, a collection of

hymn A hymn is a type of song, and partially synonymous with devotional song, specifically written for the purpose of adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a deity or deities, or to a prominent figure or personification. The word ''hymn'' d ...

-like poems, stylised as

biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

Psalms. (1934)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hlavacek, Karel 1874 births 1898 deaths 19th-century Czech poets Czech male poets Symbolist poets Symbolist painters Decadent literature Writers from Prague 19th-century Czech male writers Poets from Austria-Hungary

Works

See also

References