Humor as a Mirror of Political Reality: Anti-Communist humor in the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia in comparative perspective

• Název práce v češtině: Humor jako zrcadlo politické reality: Protikomunistický humor v Sovětském svazu a v Československu ve srovnávací perspektivě
• Název v anglickém jazyce: Humor as a Mirror of Political Reality: Anti-Communist humor in the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia in comparative perspective
• Klíčová slova: political humor, anti-Communist humor, Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia
• Klíčová slova anglicky: political humor, anti-Communist humor, Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia
• Akademický rok vypsání: 2018/2019
• Typ práce: diplomová práce
• Jazyk práce: angličtina
• Ústav: Katedra politologie (23-KP)
• Vedoucí / školitel: Janusz Salamon, Ph.D.
• Řešitel: skrytý - zadáno vedoucím/školitelem
• Datum přihlášení: 26.11.2018
• Datum zadání: 26.11.2018
• Datum a čas obhajoby: 15.09.2020 00:00
• Datum odevzdání elektronické podoby: 25.07.2020
• Datum proběhlé obhajoby: 15.09.2020
• Oponenti: Mgr. Karel Svoboda, Ph.D.

Seznam odborné literatury

Banc, C. (pseudo.) & Dundes, A. (1986): First Prize Fifteen Years, An Annotated Collection of Romanian Political Jokes. Cranbury, NJ: Associated University Presses / Fairleigh Dickenson U.P.
Banc, C. (pseudo.) & Dundes, A. (1990): You Call This Living? A Collection of East European Political Jokes. Athens: University of Georgia Press.
Beckmann, P. (1969): Whispered Anecdotes: Humor from Behind the Iron Curtain. Boulder, Colorado: Golem Press.
Beckmann, P. (1980): Hammer and Tickle, Clandestine Laughter in the Soviet Union. Boulder, Colorado: Golem Press.
Benton, G. & Loomes, G. (1976). The Big Red Joke Book. London: Pluto.
Bernstein, D. E. (2003): You Can’t Say That! The Growing Threat to Civil Liberties from Antidiscrimination Laws. Washington DC: Cato Institute.
Bruce, A. (2005). Tiny Revolutions in Russia: Twentieth-century Soviet and Russian history in anecdotes. New York: Routledge Curzon.
Burks, R. V. (1989). The Coming Crisis in the Soviet Union. In: A. Shtromas & M. A. Kaplan (eds.) The Soviet Union & the Challenge of the Future: Ideology, Culture & Nationality. New York: Paragon, Vol. 3.
Davies, C. (1998). Jokes and their Relation to Society. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
Davies, C. (2007): Humour and Protest, Jokes under Communism. International Review of Social History, Vol. 52 (15). pp. 291–305.
Davies, S. (1997). Popular Opinion in Stalin’s Russia: Terror, Propaganda and Dissent, 1934–1941. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Dolgopolova, Z. (1983). Russia Dies Laughing: Jokes from Soviet Russia. London: Unwin Publishers.
Fitzpatrick, S. (1999). Everyday Stalinism: Ordinary Life in Extraordinary Times: Soviet Russia in the 1930s. New York: Oxford University Press.
Havel, V. et al. (1979): The Power of the Powerless: Citizens Against the State in Central-Eastern Europe. M. E. Sharpe, Inc, Armonk, New York.
Kolasky, J. (1972). Look Comrade – The People are laughing: Underground wit, satire and humour from behind the Iron Curtain. Toronto: Peter Martin.
Ledeneva, A. (1998). Russia's Economy of Favours: Blat, Networking and Informal Exchange. Cambridge University Press.
Rositzke, H. (1982). The KGB: The Eyes of Russia. London: Sidgwick & Jackson
Schiff, M. (1972). Radio Eriwan antwortet. Frankfurt-am-Main: Fischer.
Schiff, M. (1975). Radio Eriwans Auslandsprogram. Frankfurt-am-Main: Fischer.
Šimek, M. & Grossmann, J. (2007). Povídky. Šulc a Švarc.
Thurston, R. W. (1991). Social Dimensions of Stalinist Rule: Humor and Terror in the USSR, 1935–1941. Journal of Social History, Vol. 24, No. 3.
Tolstoy, N. (1981). Stalin’s Secret War. London: Jonathan Cape Ltd.
Yurchak, A. (1997). The Cynical Reason of Late Socialism: Power, Pretense and the Anekdot. Public Culture, Vol. 9, No. 2.
Zlobin, N. (1996). Humor as a Political Protest. Demokratizatsiya, Vol. 4, No. 2.

Předběžná náplň práce

My thesis will focus on anti-communist humor in the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia as a mirror of political reality. Political jokes are usually of great importance but their vitality was especially apparent during the Soviet era. It gave the public a sense of freedom and escape from the communist hegemony. Naturally, jokes – be it political or otherwise – as a form of minor arts cannot be considered serious statements. However, they can serve as tools for understanding what a given society is like. During the Cold War, the secret police of some of the East European countries would limit and control the output of jokes against the existing regimes which shows just how dangerous jokes can be for leaders – especially tyrants. Numerous scholars that adopted a serious approach to the anti-communist political humor were able to predict the rapid collapse of the regime. I will try to illustrate not only the importance of anti-communist political humor in the Cold War era but also show its variations based on the country of origin. By doing so, I will be able to provide a comparative outlook on the anti-communist humor in Czechoslovakia and the USSR. In order to provide an extensive analysis of the subject, I am going to use a variety of resources, from classified Central Intelligence Agency files and academic reports to numerous collections of political jokes and writings of political activists and leaders.

Předběžná náplň práce v anglickém jazyce

My thesis will focus on anti-communist humor in the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia as a mirror of political reality. Political jokes are usually of great importance but their vitality was especially apparent during the Soviet era. It gave the public a sense of freedom and escape from the communist hegemony. Naturally, jokes – be it political or otherwise – as a form of minor arts cannot be considered serious statements. However, they can serve as tools for understanding what a given society is like. During the Cold War, the secret police of some of the East European countries would limit and control the output of jokes against the existing regimes which shows just how dangerous jokes can be for leaders – especially tyrants. Numerous scholars that adopted a serious approach to the anti-communist political humor were able to predict the rapid collapse of the regime. I will try to illustrate not only the importance of anti-communist political humor in the Cold War era but also show its variations based on the country of origin. By doing so, I will be able to provide a comparative outlook on the anti-communist humor in Czechoslovakia and the USSR. In order to provide an extensive analysis of the subject, I am going to use a variety of resources, from classified Central Intelligence Agency files and academic reports to numerous collections of political jokes and writings of political activists and leaders.