by Peter Bugge, Aarhus University, Denmark

In cooperation with Astrid Muls, MODERNITAS centre is organizing a lecture on the phenomenon of dissent and the anti-communist movement Charta 77 in the former Czechoslovakia.

Signing the Charter 77 made you a ‘signatory’ or a ‘chartist,’ but not necessarily a ‘dissident.’ This label, however, soon became the preferred one in western reporting about Charter 77, and despite strong initial reluctance, most famously expressed by Václav Havel in his 1978 essay ‘The Power of the Powerless,’ the label eventually found its way into Czech non-official discourse as well, be it at home or in exile.

The talk will investigate how the term and the figure of ‘the dissident’ rose to prominence in a transnational, triangular dynamic between Charter activism, regime repression, and foreign interpretation of, and engagement with the activities of the Chartists. It will also discuss the consequences – positive and negative – for contemporary actors as well as for present-day scholars of applying the dissident/dissidence label to the ‘Chartists’ and their activities.

Peter Bugge is an associate professor of European Studies at the School of Culture and Society, Aarhus University, specialising in Czech and Czechoslovak history, culture, and society of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, with a particular emphasis on the intersection of historical and literary studies. His research domains also encompass Czech nationalism and national self-perception since 1780. He has addressed topics like as dissent, 'grey zones', youth culture, the interplay between Communist authority and the rule of law, among other related themes. He has translated numerous works by Václav Havel into Danish, both prior to and following 1989. In 2006, he received the Stanley Z. Pech Prize from the Czechoslovak Studies Association for an exemplary publication in Czechoslovakian history.

Tuesday 5th November 2024, from 6 pm until 8 pm

Salle des Commission MSH
Bât. DE1 - Niv. 4 - Salle R4.110
Av. Antoine Depage 1
1000 Bruxelles

Free entrance

Contact : astrid.muls@ulb.be