Skip to main content
Log in

Imagining Membership: The Conception of Europe in the Political Thought of T. G. Masaryk and Václav Havel

  • Published:
Studies in East European Thought Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

A decade after the fall of Communism in Europe, the Czech Republic'smembership in the European Union is still a matter of a relatively shortwaiting period of 4 years. Not so the imagination of this membership andthe creation of a political concept created to promote this goal: thespecific Central European policy initiated by Thomas G. Masaryk andrevitalized by Václav Havel. Despite the deep differences in thepolitical thought and philosophical orientations of both Presidents, notto mention the historic rupture of 41 years of Totalitarianism, theirperceptions of Europe as an Imagined Community are identical.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

REFERENCES

  • Anderson, Benedict (1991) (rev. edition), Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and the Spread of Nationalism (London/New York).

  • Čapek, Karel (1946), Hovory s TGM. Praha.

  • Dienstbier, Jiří (1999), ‘Višegrád’, in: Mezinárodní Politika, No. 3, Praha, pp. 4–7.

    Google Scholar 

  • D'urica, Milan, S. (1996) (2), Dejiny Slovenska a Slovakóv. Bratislava.

  • Havel, Václav (1990a), Am Anfang war das Wort. Hamburg.

  • Havel, V. (1990b), Do různých stran. Eseje a články z let 1983–1989. Praha.

  • Havel, V. (1991), Letní přemítáni. Praha.

  • Havel, V. (1992), Dopisy Olze. Brno.

  • Havel, V. (1995a), Havel '94 (Praha/Litomysl).

  • Havel, V. (1995b), Medaile svobody, 4.7.1994, Filadelfie, in: Havel 1995a, pp. 100–108.

  • Hegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich (1996), Vorlesungen über die Philosophie der Weltgeschichte. Eds: Karl Heinz Ilting, Karl Brehmer, Seelmann, Hoo Nam. Hamburg.

  • Herder, Johann, Gottfried (1989), Ideen zur Philosophie der Geschichte der Menschheit, in: Martin Bollacher, Vol. 6, Ideen part III, book 15, chapt. 1. Frankfurt am Main.

  • Hoensch, Jörg, K. (1992) (3), Geschichte der Tschechoslovakei. Stuttgart/Berlin/Köln.

  • Kant, Immanuel (1992), Zum Ewigen Frieden. Hamburg.

  • Kirschbaum, Stanislas, J. (1987), Slovaques et Tchèques. Lausanne.

  • Kovác, Dušan (1997), Slováci — Češi — Dejiny. Bratislava.

  • Kozák, J.B. (1968) T.G.Masaryk a vzník Washingtonské Deklarace v Říjnu 1918. Praha.

  • Kovtůn, Jiří (1987), Masarykův triumf. Toronto, Lidové Noviny (LN), 12 August 1996, Praha.

  • Masaryk, Tomáš Garrigue (1925), Die Weltrevolution. Erinnerungen und Betrachtungen 1914–1918. Berlin.

  • Masaryk, T. G. (1930), Světová Revoluce. Praha.

  • Masaryk, T. G. (1990a), Ideály humanitni. Vybrané spisy T.G.M. Praha.

  • Masaryk, T. G. (1990b), Problém malého národa, in: Masaryk 1990a, pp. 65–95.

  • Masaryk, T. G. (1994a), Cesta demokracie III. Projevy, články, rozhovory 1924–1928, in: Ústav T. G. Masaryka (ed.), Praha.

  • Masaryk, T. G. (1994b), Nová Evropa. Brno.

  • Matuštík, Martin J. (1993), Postnational Identity. Critical Theory and Existential Philosophy in Habermas, Kierkegaard and Havel (New York/London).

  • Mezinárodní Politika (MP) (1997), No. 9, Ed.: Ústav mezinárodních vztahů. Praha.

  • Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), 3 Oktober 1997, Zürich.

  • NZZ, 1. April 1998, Zürich.

  • Patočka, Jan (1992), Was die Charta 77 ist und was sie nicht ist, in: Jan Patočka, Schriften zur tschechischen Kultur und Geschichte. Ed.: Nellen, Klaus, Pithart, Petr, Pojar, Miloš, Wien, pp. 315–318.

  • Sartori, Giovanni (1992), Demokratietheorie. Darmstadt.

  • de Weydenthal, Jan (1998), ‘Eastern Europe: Visegrád Group seeks Revival.’ in: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty News, Prague 27 October.

  • Vachudová, Milada, A. (1993), ‘The Visegrád Four: No alternative to Cooperation?’ in: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Research Report, Vol. 2,No. 34, August 27.

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Baer, J. Imagining Membership: The Conception of Europe in the Political Thought of T. G. Masaryk and Václav Havel. Studies in East European Thought 52, 203–226 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1008759519923

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1008759519923

Navigation