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A large part of Švejk’s humor comes from the multilingual nature of the Austro-Hungarian empire at that time. The common soldiers speak Czech amongst themselve
by mikrl 3y ago
A large part of Švejk’s humor comes from the multilingual nature of the Austro-Hungarian empire at that time.
The common soldiers speak Czech amongst themselves, German to the commanding officers, and a drunken old Polish colonel butchers both languages while giving them a pep talk.
There are also miscommunications with Hungarians and Tatars.
Central Europe is heavily multicultural and multilingual, even in 1914, but there are still strong national identities; because of, not despite.
- yreg 3y agoSome parts of it used to be more multicultural and multilingual than they are now. Bratislava was 36% German, 33% Slovak and 29% Hungarian in the 1919 census. Now it's ~90% Slovak.
- The_Colonel 3y agoNot some, pretty much all of Czechia and Slovakia were much more multicultural back then than now. Germans weren't just in Sudetenland, but was a significant minority in many small towns. Same with Hungarians (just in Slovakia). Now there are almost no Germans or Jews in either of them.
- talkingtab 3y agoIt is an interesting thing to think about. It appears to me (an outsider) that the Czech identity is very strong. Why is that? Especially in the face of the occupation by the Germans and Russians since what 1938 or something? And the Velvet Revolution seems (again as an outsider) just an amazing thing. What role does having a separate language play? And the multiculturalism. In the US we have such a great homogeneity. If I drive into Rhode Island I don't find another language or another culture. It is not like driving from France into the Nederlands for example.