The reason Kundera never returned is because he was ashamed that he snitched to secret police and other intellectuals knew it.
Author of the article tries to downplay it with
> The article didn’t produce any evidence apart from hearsay and a police protocol mentioning that Kundera was the source of the information.
But the evidence was solid, he ruined a young man's life by putting him for 20 years into prison that was almost gulag-like.
I think Kundera always regret it and that's why he withdraw to France and stayed there. Yet he never apologized or even commented on that topic.
I grew up with his books and they had great impact on me when I was 18. He's a great writer. I wouldn't even mind that he snitched if he went through some acknowledgment and redemption. But he hasn't and remains a flawed character in my eyes. Almost every Czech author who emigrated helped the dissent that stayed home in some way. He didn't.
Havel is a great man, one of our greatest. He's a fine author. Kundera is a great author. Not a fine man.
Author of the article tries to downplay it with
But the evidence was solid, he ruined a young man's life by putting him for 20 years into prison that was almost gulag-like.I think Kundera always regret it and that's why he withdraw to France and stayed there. Yet he never apologized or even commented on that topic.
I grew up with his books and they had great impact on me when I was 18. He's a great writer. I wouldn't even mind that he snitched if he went through some acknowledgment and redemption. But he hasn't and remains a flawed character in my eyes. Almost every Czech author who emigrated helped the dissent that stayed home in some way. He didn't.
Havel is a great man, one of our greatest. He's a fine author. Kundera is a great author. Not a fine man.