1. Adult Learning in the Nineteenth Century in the Mirror of Novels and Short Stories: Czech Literature.
- Author
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Kulich, Jindra
- Abstract
Czech novels and short stories dealing with life in the 19th century were reviewed for information about how adults in rural areas of Czechoslovakia learned and the topics that interested them. The literature review confirmed that adults living in rural areas of Czechoslovakia in the 19th century generally had a great desire for education, including self-education, and faced many obstacles to gaining the knowledge they desired. Village schoolteachers and parsons played a crucial role. Schoolteachers not only disseminated books and periodicals but also strove to improve agriculture, gardening, and beekeeping. Enlightened parish priests of the time spread education among the common folk, often in cooperation with schoolteachers. The rural clergy loaned and distributed books to the common folk. Often, village schoolteachers and parsons continued their own education together. The story "The Village in the Foothills" provides a picture of lifelong learning in rural Czechoslovakia. The Czech literature also demonstrates that although some burghers and gentry actively fostered education of the common folk, some actively opposed it. Several novels and short stories document the existence of innovators among farmers, merchants, and others in rural Czechoslovakia. Numerous literary works describe the physical and other hardships faced by those undertaking educational work in rural Czechoslovakia. (Contains 23 references.) (MN)
- Published
- 2002