Václav Havel and the ideal of democracy

Marie L. Neudorfl

pp. 116-137

in: Stanislav J. Kirschbaum (ed), Historical reflections on central Europe, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 1999

Abstract

The course of the Czechoslovak Velvet Revolution in November 1989, carried out in the name of democracy and the best Czechoslovak modern political traditions, makes highly justified the investigation of Václav Havel's political thoughts before and after the revolution. He became not only the first president of a renewed Czechoslovak democracy, but he became known, both at home and abroad, for his demand for close ties between politics and morality. The purpose of this paper is to look at Havel's political thinking and assess its nature and overall impact.

Cited authors

Havel Vaclav