Franz Kafka Prize
1 appearances
-
Edition 2 (2002) Winner
Ivan Klíma
イヴァン・クリーマ
Ivan Klíma
Aliases:
Ivan Kauders
Profile
- Gender
- Male
- Born
- 1931-09-09 （Prague, Czechoslovakia）
- Died
- 2025-10-04 （Prague, Czech Republic） age 94
- Nationality
- Czech
- Languages
- Czech, English
- Religion
- Judaism
- Residence History
- Prague (birthplace and longtime residence) → London (short stay) → Michigan, USA (teaching/visits)
Career
- Occupations
- novelist, playwright, professor
- Active Years
- 1950-2025
- Memberships
- Communist Party of Czechoslovakia (former member)
- Influenced By
- Franz Kafka, Karel Čapek, Czesław Miłosz
- Influenced
- Contemporary Czech writers, Writers of memoir and historical themes
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Charles University in Prague | — | — | — | — | Czechoslovakia |
Charles University in Prague
Country:
Czechoslovakia
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Franz Kafka Prize | — | — | Franz Kafka Society (Czech Republic) | 受賞 |
| 2010 | Magnesia Litera (non-fiction) | My Crazy Century | ノンフィクション | Magnesia Litera (Czech literary award) | 受賞 |
Franz Kafka Prize
2002
Organization:
Franz Kafka Society (Czech Republic)
Result:
受賞
Magnesia Litera (non-fiction)
2010
Work:
My Crazy Century
Category:
ノンフィクション
Organization:
Magnesia Litera (Czech literary award)
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
My Crazy Century
2009 memoir / essaysA two-volume memoir tracing Klíma's life from childhood in concentration camps through the communist era to post-1989 Czech democracy, intertwining personal memory with 20th-century Czech history.
memory and traumatotalitarianism and dissentindividual and history
Translations
- English translation 'My Crazy Century' (Grove Press, 2013)
Love and Garbage
1986 novelA novel portraying postwar Czech society and human dignity through the protagonist who works at Prague's refuse depot.
marginalityethics and dignityurban memory
Translations
- English translation 'Love and Garbage' (1990)
A Ship Named Hope
1969 novel / collectionA collection of stories/novels circling a ship named Hope, exploring human relations against social and political backdrops.
hope and despairhuman relationshipspolitical backdrop
Translations
- English 'A Ship Named Hope' (1970)
Bibliography
- A Wonderful Day (1960)
- A Peaceful Hour (1963)
- Lovers for a Night (1964)
- A Ship Named Hope (1969)
- A Summer Affair (1972/1987 English)
- My Merry Mornings (1979/1985 English)
- My First Loves (1985/1986 English)
- Love and Garbage (1986/1990 English)
- Judge on Trial (1986/1991 English)
- Essays and Interviews (1990)
- The Minister and the Angel (1990)
- My Golden Trades (1990)
- Plays: A Play in Two Acts (1991)
- Island of Dead Kings (1992)
- Waiting for the Dark, Waiting for the Light (1993)
- The Spirit of Prague and Other Essays (1994)
- Love Conversations (1995)
- How Far Is the Sun (1995)
- Ultimate Intimacy (1996)
- Circle of Enemies of the Czech Language (1998)
- About the Boy Who Did Not Become a Number (1998)
- Fictions and Histories (1998)
- Lovers for a Day (1999)
- No Saints or Angels (1999)
- A Great Age Needs Great Murders: Life and Works of Karel Čapek (2001)
- Karel Čapek: Life and Work (2002)
- The Prime Minister and an Angel (2003)
- My Golden Trips (2004)
- My Crazy Century (2009/2013 English)
Translations of Works
- 'Moje šílené století' → English translation 'My Crazy Century' (Grove Press, 2013)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- reflective and lyricalblend of realism and social satireironical narrative voice
- Recurring Motifs
- memory and childhood traumathe city of Pragueindividual ethical choice
Legacy
One of the leading Czech writers of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. His work, rooted in experiences of concentration camps and critiques of communist rule, earned domestic and international recognition, including the Franz Kafka Prize.
Academic Societies
- Czech literary studies societies
Archives
- National Library of the Czech Republic – authors' archives
- Jewish Museum in Prague – holdings
In Popular Culture
- Influence on works addressing modern Czech history and memoir
Quotes
-
"Anyone who has been through a concentration camp as a child ... that life can be snapped like a piece of string — that was my daily lesson as a child."
Source: Granta / interview essay (paraphrased) (1993)
Trivia
- Born Ivan Kauders; family adopted surname Klíma after World War II.
- Deported to Theresienstadt (Terezín) in 1941 as a child and survived the camp.
- Active dissident during the 1968 Prague Spring and later involved in samizdat.
- Received the Franz Kafka Prize (2002) and Magnesia Litera (non-fiction, 2010).