„Моритати и легенди“ излиза през знаковата 1968 г. и включва по-ранни творби на писателя, обединени от възможността чрез два познати от древността повествователни жанра да бъдат пресъздадени радостите, страданията и страховете на ХХ век.
От привидно баналния делник на обикновения човек авторът съумява да извлече и смразяващи трагедии, и граничещи с лудостта психически състояния, и трогателна доброта и човечност. Дори на фона на самобитното писане на Храбал сборникът се откроява с изумителна образност, с разтърсващо въздействие върху ума, емоциите и съвестта на читателя, с неподражаема сплав от брутален натурализъм и крехка като стъкло нежност. Освен моритати („кървави истории за убийства и страшни събития“ според речниковото значение на думата) и модерни легенди книгата съдържа размисли за естеството на писателството, за странните отношения между автор и читатели и така ни допуска до творческата лаборатория на един недостижим алхимик на словото.
Born in Brno-Židenice, Moravia, he lived briefly in Polná, but was raised in the Nymburk brewery as the manager's stepson.
Hrabal received a Law degree from Prague's Charles University, and lived in the city from the late 1940s on.
He worked as a manual laborer alongside Vladimír Boudník in the Kladno ironworks in the 1950s, an experience which inspired the "hyper-realist" texts he was writing at the time.
His best known novels were Closely Watched Trains (1965) and I Served the King of England. In 1965 he bought a cottage in Kersko, which he used to visit till the end of his life, and where he kept cats ("kočenky").
He was a great storyteller; his popular pub was At the Golden Tiger (U zlatého tygra) on Husova Street in Prague, where he met the Czech President Václav Havel, the American President Bill Clinton and the then-US ambassador to the UN Madeleine Albright on January 11th, 1994.
Several of his works were not published in Czechoslovakia due to the objections of the authorities, including The Little Town Where Time Stood Still (Městečko, kde se zastavil čas) and I Served the King of England (Obsluhoval jsem anglického krále).
He died when he fell from a fifth floor hospital where he was apparently trying to feed pigeons. It was noted that Hrabal lived on the fifth floor of his apartment building and that suicides by leaping from a fifth-floor window were mentioned in several of his books.
He was buried in a family grave in the cemetery in Hradištko. In the same grave his mother "Maryška", step father "Francin", uncle "Pepin", wife "Pipsi" and brother "Slávek" were buried.
He wrote with an expressive, highly visual style, often using long sentences; in fact his work Dancing Lessons for the Advanced in Age (1964) (Taneční hodiny pro starší a pokročilé) is made up of just one sentence. Many of Hrabal's characters are portrayed as "wise fools" - simpletons with occasional or inadvertent profound thoughts - who are also given to coarse humour, lewdness, and a determination to survive and enjoy oneself despite harsh circumstances. Political quandaries and their concomitant moral ambiguities are also a recurrent theme.
Along with Jaroslav Hašek, Karel Čapek, and Milan Kundera - who were also imaginative and amusing satirists - he is considered one of the greatest Czech writers of the 20th century. His works have been translated into 27 languages.
Čitala sam Hrabala i ranije (Svaki dan čudo) ali ovo nije baš blisko tim pripovetkama, ili sam ja nešto potisnula ili sam naprosto u mladosti imala jači stomak. Moritati i legende, s jedne strane, imaju Hrabalov tipični crni humor, ali s druge strane, zaista je crn, i moritati u naslovu tu su s dobrim razlogom. Ova zbirka odskače i po tome što ima dosta formalnih eksperimenata pa neke priče stvarno deluju kao jezički kolaži u kojima se sukobljavaju životi svetaca, ulični tračevi i prisna geografija. Ali - ne znam da li je sećanje varljivo ili zaista u ovim pričama nema neke šašave topline koju sam nalazila u onim prethodnima ili prosto u trenutku kad sam ove čitala nisam uspela da je osetim. Ali da se ne pitate mnogo šta ovde zaobilazim: pa evo, na primer, cela jedna priča je dnevnik lepuškaste mlade devojke o tome koji su njeni udvarači i šta je kome od njih rekla i gde su se šetali i kakvu je haljinu obukla tog dana, da bi poslednjih stranu i po odjednom perspektiva skočila na tu sada sredovečnu gospođu koja pregleda svoj devojački dnevnik A ONDA čuje nešto, istrči u dvorište i upadne u razvaljeni senkrup sa svinjom i mužem pa se prepadnuta tovna svinja od par stotina kila popne na njih dvoje da ne potone i... kraj priče. Meni je to previše brutalno ali poštujem ko voli :/
I da, priče je prevodio pokojni Aleksandar Ilić, i vidi se da su prevođene s ljubavlju i razumevanjem i da je razgovorni jezik u njima koju generaciju udaljen od našeg, baš kao što treba.
ОК, у тренутку објављивања ово је било субверзивно, другачије од наметнутих правила социјалистичке књижевности, експериментално итд. итд. Исто тако, неоспорно је да Бохумил Храбал зна да пише, али овде нисам нашао ужитак у читању, жао ми је.
На първия моритат "Моритат, написан от читателите" се смях много, тоя човек е луд за връзване! Общото усещане беше за един по-ранен Храбал. Фрагменти от някои моритати и легенди съм срещал в другите му произведения. "Легенда за Каин" си беше като предисловие и прототип на "Строго охранявани влакове", макар Влаковете да бяха къде-къде по-стилни и добри. Стилът се колебаеше между т.нар автоматично писане и любимият му колаж от текст, но без да се прекъсва идеята и губи смисълът. Няма как да не се появи и темата за самоубийството, изглежда това е било някаква странна обсесия на Храбал. Брутално откровен както винаги.
Pisane pod velikim uticajem nadrealizma, priče iz zbirke "Moritati i legende", koja je nedavno objavljena u beogradskoj Laguni, mimo ambicioznih i komercijalnih izdavačkih projekata, nisu nimalo lake za čitanje. Neke od njih, poput "Legende odsvirane na strunama napetim između kolevke i groba", nastale su tehnikom automatskog pisanja. Njihova prohodnost i prisustvo fabulativno-sižejne strukture svedena je na minimum. Ipak, asocijativnost ove proze, različiti postupci kojima se Hrabal veoma vešto koristi i moje trenutno raspoloženje za ovakvu vrstu literature učinili su da mi se skup ovih moritata, čije značenje autor na kraju objašnjava, i legendi zaista dopadne.
Харесвам как пише Храбал, в тази книга има много интересни експерименти с формата, но като цяло не ми допадна толкова, колкото "Прекалено шумна самота".
Tra quelli che ho letto finora è il più sperimentale dei libri di Hrabal. In alcuni racconti mi è piaciuto molto, in altri meno, in altri ancora ho rinunciato a cercare di stargli dietro. Resta la voglia di approfondire un autore che ha stile da vendere, magari tornando ai romanzi e ai suoi muri di testo
"Ci sono molti tipi di umorismo, e le loro armi colpiscono l'intimo dell'uomo. Ciascuna in modo diverso. L'arma del compagno Hrabal risuona come l'argento e quando taglia fa sgorgare un balsamo." (Ballata scritta dai lettori, p. 13)
Cuentos con una combinación curiosa de costumbrismo y surrealismo. A ratos duros de leer (algunos son muy experimentales) y a ratos fascinantes. No los recomendaría como entrada al autor, pero muestran muchas facetas de su obra.
Always glad to have another volume of translated stories from Hrabal. This was not as engaging as some, however. Connected with each story Hrabal adds a postscript that says something about its origin. In a couple cases he describes his method of writing as "mixed text freely compiled from" multiple sources (p. 89), or a "montage" which "arose through the rhythmic alteration of excerpts" from various sources (p. 107). I suppose you can praise the originality of the approach, but you can't really read it--or I couldn't. A couple of the pieces are concerned with readers reactions to Hrabal's own writing, and these were pretty good. "A Ballad Written by My Readers" is alternating paragraphs of praise and shame. It is hard to tell whether these are real or made up, but even if made up they are funny and probably roughly accurate. This would not make a good first book to read by Hrabal, but it has its moments of brilliance.
Na Prag će me uvek asocirati crna i zlatna - i najdublji mrak i najviši sjaj. Izlazi iz okvira jednog sistema, što u pogledu forme, što u pogledu tema, a zapravo je samo jedna - život! Daje nam sliku svakoga, svakakvoga, uči nas da je svaki čovek drugačiji, i da se u tome krije njegova lepota. ✨ Stop poređenju, živela inovativnost!
“Some people will always manage to bash their heads in, no most how softly you pad their cells.”
Short writings with variety that showcase Hrabal's prosaic skill are what is offered here. A Cz. national treasure - Hrabal writes like the most interesting person at the bar. Masterful palavering - he seems to be perpetually asking, "what do you think of this?" - said another way - he shows great interest in his reader and his conversational skill is often on full display. He combines great story telling, strong knowledge of self and others, and a witty sense of humor to effective results. This is probably not the best place to start with Hrabal as his longer from, and better known, works like Closely Watched Trains and Dancing Lessons for the Advanced in Age seem better edited or translated and more focused than these more spontaneous missives. This edition, for this reader, features small print crammed together on dense pages that don't exactly make for easy reading. This won't be a major problem for those familiar with Hrabal who won't object to taking their time with his writing but I've had easier experiences on the eyes. A few beers aren't likely to make the average drinker hallucinate but for Hrabal, a bit of time in the pub seems to result in him slowly floating above his bar stool towards the ether of a fungal opacity. Like Svankmejer who's surrealism is firmly rooted in the every-day, Hrabal draws a full quaff of everyman's pilsner before his story eventually emerges through the coruscating foam. I'm not sure it matters if you read Too Loud a Solitude before or after this - but almost everything I've read from Hrabal seems to build up or out from that point of departure and you should not form your opinion of him without having read that. Don't think these short stories are a quick read as they are often dense and sometimes fairly impenetrable but not without reward. He babbles, staggers and reels with clairvoyant brilliance and I can't think of someone I'd better prefer to populate the adjacent barstool.
Like most collections of short stories, this book is a mixed bag. The Legend of Julinka and The Legend of Cain are turn-your-heart-inside-out stories of war and sex and genocide that showcase Hrabal's literary and ethical talents. Conversely, stories such as The Legend of Lammartz Needles had me snickering like a deviant on a park bench (causing the polite lady of what the French call "a certain age" at the other end of the bench to get up and move). Mock op-eds like the Ballad of a Public Execution are a clear and damning satire of communist public ethics, while A Legend Played on Strings had me scratching my beard and rereading passages looking for the point.
All in all, the collection is what I expect from Hrabal. None of these categories are fully discrete. The Legend of Cain is horrifying, but it is also darkly comedic. The Legend of Lammartz Needles is a straight-forward satire, but it is also rambling and obtuse—albeit for comedic effect. Ect. Etc.
Hrabal's genius is his ability to touch the surface of everything and, somehow, to get at the very heart of it. He's like a doctor who, with a faint brush of the fingers against a patient's neck or stomach, can determine the functionality of a dozen organs. The format of the short story plays well into this almost-magical ability.
Difficult to read at times, this book is a unique literary achievement. It's a brilliant expedition into the darkest corners of human souls. It is also a celebration of life, but the one that zooms in on human failings, greed, solitude, alienation. Visually strong, the book shows us unexpected directions and turns that promising lives full of hope can take. Innovative collages that could only have been conceived under totalitarian regimes, when the author had to hide his writings in the bottles and bury them in the garden to wait better times.
Nuž, musím sa priznať, že toto som prelúskavala ťažšie. Nie som dobrý znalec Hrabalovho diela a možno aj preto boli pre mňa niektoré morytáty či legendy neuchopiteľné a nepochopiteľné. Šlo to tentokrát skrátka mimo mňa. Ale jeho štýl písania, ten je naozaj famózny a nekonvenčný. Práve kvôli nemu sa teším na ďalšie Hrabalove diela.
Разкошна Храбалова сесия си направих с двете автобиографични "Сватби в къщата" и "Vita Nuova", и накрая "Моритати и легенди". Чуден е Храбал, няма друг автор като него, искам да не свършват книгите му и да мога задълго да остана в неговия свят на малките големи неща.
A collection of stories from the '60s, including a draft of part of Closely Watched Trains, after Hrabal had become a well-known (and -harassed) author. Hrabal humbly presents his stories as "pub tales," but the tales reveal a deep core of violent and sexual amorality seething in the lives of these otherwise "regular folk." Timothy West's translation reads well in idiomatic English.