he Fateful Adventures of the Good Soldier Švejk During the World War

My Great Books book club discussed Jaroslav Hasek's classic “The Good Solder Svejk” during the March 31, 2018. To be more specific, we discussed the first section, “Behind the Lines,” which is a little over 200 pages.

For many reasons, I was really happy to be exposed to this book. First, I'm half Czech and my 100% Czech grandmother would have been ecstatic to know that I was reading a Czech book (in translation, of course). Second, this book club read Joseph Heller's “Catch-22” in November 2017; Joseph Heller mentioned that “Svejk” was a major influence on “Catch.” Having read “Catch-22” several times, it's pretty cool to read the worked that sparked Heller's imagination. Third, the book is a RIOT and one that never came up in high school or college. Fourth, one of my great grandfathers or great-great grandfathers served in the Austrian army, deserted, and ended up imprisoned in a castle, so there's some parts to this story that smack of real life.

We begin “Svejk” in the middle of the story with no back story about Sjevk's life. How old is he? Where was he born? Who are his family? Has he ever been married or had children? He seems to be a free-floating will-o-the-wisp who floats from one scrape to another without too many cares. Perhaps, he is also a statement about what happens to conscriptable men in occupied countries; even if you have a family or obligations, you can be pulled up for service or imprisonment at any time. What Svejk can and does do is worry about his own neck, which is often in quite a bit of trouble. And that's what you do when you're in an occupied country and in wartime, both of which apply to Svejk.

Yet, Sjevk's nearly magical ability to give people what they want, appear idiotic, provide alcohol, or to distract/charm his abusers/accusers with random stories gets him out of disaster after disaster. Was he truly an idiot? I think not - he was probably the smartest man in the book. From the Austrian's perspective, all Czechs were criminals, malingerers, and/or servants. So, one simply has to accept the nonsense of bureacracy and work around it as best as one can.

Below are the discussions questions another book club member put together:

1. Why do you think Svejk's personality, background, age, marital history, family are never
described?
2. Does Svejk seem mentally impaired? Literate? Is he a malingerer?
3. Svejk follows orders directly and literally, although his speech is heavily ironic. What is the
outcome?
4. In the first scene how does Svejk, as Everyman, view the origin of the war? What is the
author's belief about why wars begin? What unanswerable questions does he pose? Does he
reveal any firm political opinions?
5. Svejk undergoes various interrogations. What do these scenes reveal about the Austrian
government's pre-war social policies?
6. In his portrayal of Chaplain Katz, what view does Hasek present of the Catholic church and
the Church's role in sending men to war? Why does the author give such a long description of
the preparation for the Drumhead Mass?
7. Do we, in the U.S., have a contemporary satirical writer such as Hasek? How would Hasek
have written about our current political climate? What would be an equivalent period in
American history?
8. What other literary or cinematic works came to mind as you read Sveik?
9. The narrator's voice has been criticized, and offense taken by nearly every political and
religious group. What parts of the book did you find offensive? Which seemed the most wellwritten?
10. Lt. Lukas was a real person; the author's company commander. How does he differ from the
other officers?
11. What are your thoughts about the bureaucratic doublespeak used by the characters? How
would you compare it to Orwell? To current political language?
12. Who were your favorite characters and why?

In Malá Strana, there is a good cafe, the Kavárna V Sedmém Nebi. Where I, the chaplain, and his batboy enjoyed a minor weekly dalliance. The barman served grog, but it was an inferior specimen, so we kept to the pils. It was here on a sticky summer evening that we encountered the pleasant and noble Jakub. Jakub was a wallet maker, he created careful and cunning leather instruments comprised mostly of horsehide, with linings of silk. His care and precision did not translate to his progressive but violent views on the excesses of consumption. He was an ardent supporter of the Extinction Rebellion, a virtuous to some, villainous to others, cadre of rascals and rapscallions who have done much to oppose the global machine.

Yes, thank you, another round is in order, yes, and four Borovička, one extra for my friend here, who does good business with his dogs, or, when legally obligated to discuss and disclose their breed, mutts. He surely would appreciate the juniper berry. As I was saying, the noble wallet artisan incited with some, according to manyfold layers of Austrian bureaucracy, unsavory fellows and nearly ended in the gaols. He was fortuitously spared from this degradation by the ineptitude of two winged transit couriers, who instead of delivering the news of his crimes and pending incarceration to the Czech authorities, succumbed to their earthly desires, falling into a honeypot.

These courier pigeons were considered by the seductress's breeder to be in excellent form, and entered into three races. The pair of birds finished fourth in their first race, homing to Tunis in a mere three days. They eventually ended up facing down the Belgian fancier Janssen's dreadful bird, La Belle Janis, in a heat that nearly cost the lives of all three birds but eventually ended in both triumph and tragedy on Cyril Viktor Jean-Baptiste Emmanuel's fourth-story balcony in the 12th arrondissement of Paris.

Unfortunately, or fortunately if you are Kees Janssen, Cyril's faithful purebred - not a word I use lightly - St Bernard consumed the two exhausted birds in a celebratory and slobbery manner as Mr. Emmanuel searched for his bottle opener. We can consider the passing of such elegant creatures for the greater good, as this was the day Mr. Emmanuel decided, with much alignment from Ms. Emmanuel, to cease his excess in alcohol that had been plaguing their household. This sobriety is why Jakub has now created a wallet of such ingenuity that no one will ever forget their bottle opener again, as he has fashioned one directly into one of his exquisite portefeuilles!