Vilém Závada (2 May 1905 – 30 November 1982) was a Czech poet, translator and journalist.

Biography

Závada was born in to the family of a metal worker, his father died during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, an event which left a huge impression on his future works. His mother raised Vilém and his two brothers in impoverished circumstances. Závada graduated from his doctorate in philosophy at the

Charles University Charles University (CUNI; , UK; ; ), or historically as the University of Prague (), is the largest university in the Czech Republic. It is one of the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, oldest universities in the world in conti ...

and started his literary career. Initially a representative of

Poetism Poetism () was an artistic program in Czechoslovakia which belongs to the avant-garde; it has never spread abroad. It was invented by members of the avant-garde association Devětsil, mainly Vítězslav Nezval and Karel Teige. It is mainly known i ...

, he broke with the literary style in favor of a more gloomy and pessimistic romanticism. In 1927 Závada wrote his most famous work, '' Panychida'', a work which was for the commoderation of the fallen of the First World War as well as a melancholic meditation on life itself. In the 30s Závada mostly worked as a magazine editor. After the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Nazi Germany, he became more reclusive and wrote ''Hradní věž'', which was about his coming to terms with the fate of his country. After the German surrender Závada joined the

Communist Party of Czechoslovakia The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia ( Czech and Slovak: ''Komunistická strana Československa'', KSČ) was a communist and Marxist–Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed between 1921 and 1992. It was a member of the Com ...

however was not involved in party politics. After a period of simplistic acceptance of the optimism of post-war conditions, at the end of his life he returned to the poetry of existential depth and tragedy of life. In 1948 he was appointed the director of the National Library of Czechoslovakia, a position from which he resigned in 1949. In 1958 he was again temporarily appointed head of the library. in 1966 he was awarded the position of National Artist. In 1969, he was awarded in the anniversary of the 100th anniversary of

Otokar Březina Václav Jebavý (13 September 1868 – 25 March 1929); mostly known by his pen name of Otokar or Otakar Březina (); was a Czech poet and essayist, considered the greatest of Czech Symbolists. Biography Březina was born in the small town of P ...

's birthday. Závada died in 1982 in Prague at the age of 77 and was buried at the

Vyšehrad Cemetery Established in 1869 on the grounds of Vyšehrad Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, the Vyšehrad Cemetery () is the final resting place of many composers, artists, sculptors, writers, and those from the world of science and politics. The center ...

. His son Jan Závada (1933–2024) was a Czech molecular oncologist, expert in virus genetics.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zavada, Vilem 1905 births 1982 deaths Writers from Ostrava Czech male poets Czech poets Czech translators Communist Party of Czechoslovakia members Burials at Vyšehrad Cemetery Charles University alumni