An Introduction to Literature: Fiction / Poetry / Drama. 6th ed. Ed. Alice S. Landy and William Rodney Allen.

Response by Angela Fushtey
 

Vaclav Havel is an eighteen page play that is translated by Vera Blackwell.  There are two characters that speak in this play which are Vaclav and an old friend of his named Stanek.

Stanek appears to have more to say in the sense that his dialogue is at least triple the size of Vaclav who basically just nods and says "mmnn-".  Before the play even starts there is a paragraph describing Vaclav and his passion for protest and writing.

This is a story about a man named Stanek who is trying to help the barer of his daughter's child to get out of jail.  He does so by calling up Vaclav on the telephone and inviting him over to discuss a petition.  To Stanek's surprise Vaclav has the petition already with him and signed by many people.  The climax in this play is when Stanek had to decide to sign the petition or not to sign the petition.  Sure it was his idea in the first place but he knows if he signs the petition he could loose his job and many other things.  If he does not sign the petition there is loss of moral respect that he has for himself and that his children have for him.

In the end Stanek gets a phone call stating that this man who he is petitioning for is in no further need of the petition for he has just been let out of jail.  The thing that I find interesting about this story is that the whole conversation was for nothing.  Everything the two men discussed and argued over was for nothing.
 
 
 

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