FRIEND

“T.G. Masaryk can never lie, not even in a children’s fairy tale.” ~Karel Čapek    

Čapek was politically involved in what was going on in the inter-World War period around him. Soon thereafter, Čapek met the then President of democratic Czechoslovakia, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk, who took his American wife’s last name Garrigue, a progressive act for his era. Masaryk became a welcome guest at Čapek’s celebrated debating club, The Friday Men, where the intellectual community met to discuss politics and other important topics. Čapek saw in Masaryk a man of great moral responsibility, character, authority, and intellect. He remained in frequent connection with the President, even visiting him at the Castle. Čapek often defended Masaryk’s views on democracy and interviewed him over several years, publishing Talks with T. G. Masaryk, recording the President’s thoughts on life, politics, and nationalism. Čapek himself took a strong stance in the 1930s against the threat of Germany, ardently condemning fascism.  Fearless of the consequences, he felt a deep responsibility to his country. His combination of political and aesthetic concerns was an inspiration for later Czech writers such as Václav Havel.    

Photo Courtesy: Karel Čapek Memorial     
Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk and Karel Čapek