Research plan

Research into Czech literature from earliest times to the present, reflecting its historical, theoretical, interpretational and documentary aspects (2005-2011)

Subject of the research activity implemented in the research plan:

The subject of research is Czech literature, not only as a corpus of texts and a cultural heritage that invites a more in-depth elaboration of existing knowledge, but also as a living organism, which through its dialogue with the past continues to develop and be enriched so that as an integral whole it opens up to new interpretations, which contribute to the self-comprehension process taking place within the national culture. The character of the research plan stems from the specific nature of this subject and the individual status of the ASCR ICL within the framework of Czech literary studies in this country and its "duty" on the one hand to administer, update and provide access to basic informaton sources, while on the other hand implementing complex, long-term research projects involving literary history and theory. The first element in this task is fulfilled by special-subject bibliographic databases and the Czech Electronic Library, which provides access in the form of full-text databases to Czech literature from the early 19th century onwards for specialist text work and readership reception. In the years to come, these will be supplemented by a digitized online version of our lexicographic output, which ties in with the most extensive work to date on Czech literary lexicography: the Lexicon of Czech Literature, the last volume of which is currently going through its final edit. This entire work, which is exceptional for its factographic range, together with the completed History of Czech Literature since 1945, which is characterized by the breadth of its range of material, constitutes the second element in the orientation of the institute, as well as a basic contribution to the elucidation of literary history and a validation of its methods. In the forthcoming period, literary-historical research will be enhanced by a series of monographs on prominent figures and important problems in Czech literature and a study of  various aspects of literary culture and life, particularly the phenomenon of popular literature. In the next few years, literary theory research will branch out into two streams: as a response to the need to reflect the changes in domestic and world thought on literature and the methodological alternatives there is narrative theory research,  while the openness of literary studies research to an interdisciplinary perspective is represented by the Text in Motion project.