| Description |
This paper will examine the political ideals of Tomas G. Masaryk, the first president of the Czechoslovak Republic, and the influence of religion on Masaryk's political and philosophical outlook. The paper focuses on the years before and during the first World War (i.e., the years before the creation of an independent Czechoslovakia and Masaryk's presidency). The Ideals ofHumanity: Tomas G. Masaryk and the Moral and Religious Foundations of the First Czechoslovak Republic is divided into three parts. Part I provides an overview of Masaryk's background and his early educational and religious influences, beginning with his childhood and continuing through his years in college. The second part of this study examines the development of Masaryk's ideas after he arrived in the Czech capital of Prague to assume a faculty position at the Czech University. Part III focuses on the years 1914 to 1918 and traces the development of Masaryk's advocacy of an independent Czechoslovakia and the factors that allowed his position to prevail. Finally, the paper concludes with an analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of Masaryk's political philosophy as it manifested itself in the achievement of an independent state. This study makes extensive use of both primary and secondary sources. Masaryk's writings are widely available in English translation and are cited throughout this paper. Biographical works, both primary and secondary, were used as a source of basic background information, and as an important source of Masaryk's ideas. Scholarly studies of Masaryk's academic and political careers were also consulted, as were a small number of secondary sources in the Czech language. Comprehensive histories of the Hapsburg Empire, the Czech and Slovak nations, and Czechoslovakia provided some background information and, more importantly, historical context. |
