A History of Bohemian LiteratureLützow, Francis, hrabe
History
A History of Bohemian Literature
Lützow, Francis, hrabe
Czech literature -- History and criticism
PAUL JOSEPH ŠAFAŘIK (1795-1861), like Kollar, was a native of the Slav
district of Northern Hungary. As the son of a Protestant clergyman he
received his first education in his own country, and from his early
youth gave proof of his enthusiasm for the Slavic race, which inspired
him during his whole life. In 1815 he visited the then far-famed
University of Jena in Germany, and on his return to Hungary accepted
a situation as private tutor at Pressburg. He here became acquainted
with Palacký, and the friendship that sprang up between them continued
during the whole of their lives. In 1819 Šafařik was appointed director
of the gymnasium at Nový Sad (Neusatz), in Southern Hungary. His
life here was embittered by constant persecution on the part of the
Hungarian authorities, whose aversion to the Slav aspirations was as
great as that of the German officials in Austria.
Šafařik's writings had meanwhile attracted attention at Prague, and
some of the Bohemian patriots, though by no means opulent, subscribed
a sufficient sum to enable him to proceed to Prague. His life here
also was a wretched one. He was in constant financial distress. While
occupied with learned works of the highest importance, he was obliged
to gain his living by writing in popular journals, and he had at one
time even to accept the humiliating and invidious office of a "censor."
Writing on Slav subjects is not at the present day a very lucrative
occupation. It was yet less so at the time of Šafařik, when interest
in these matters was still more limited. Šafařik's health began to
fail in consequence of constant anxiety, but he continued his studies
on the history and language of his country and race undauntedly. A
speaker at the meeting of Bohemian scholars that in 1895 celebrated the
centenary of Šafařik's birth, rightly described him as a "martyr of
science." While the Austrian Government continued to regard Šafařik's
researches with indifference, the attention of the Prussian authorities
was attracted to his profound knowledge of Slavic philology and
archaeology, sciences that were then in their infancy. Šafařik was
offered a professorship both by the University of Breslau and that
of Berlin, but the Austrian Government, not wishing that he should
expatriate himself, now appointed him professor of Slavic philology at
the University of Prague. He, however, gave up this appointment a year
later, when he became librarian of that university. In 1848 Šafařik
made a brief appearance in the political arena. He was a member of
the Slav congress that met at Prague in that year, and a speech in
favour of the solidarity of the Slav nations which he delivered there
caused great sensation. The failure of the congress and the German
reaction,[159] which lasted from 1849 to 1859, were deeply felt by
Šafařik. He now confined his studies to the remote antiquity of the
Slav race. Every allusion to Bohemian history of later times again
became inadmissible during these years.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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