Otto Drexler
The identity of theater director F. A. Šubert. Habitus, or posture?
The aim of this article is to present several moments from the career of a leading figure in the Czech national movement, František Adolf Šubert (1849-1915). As a journalist, writer and capable organizer, during the 1870s he gained the favour and trust of the most influential figures in the Old Czech party - Jan Stanislav Skrejšovský and František Ladislav Rieger - and with their support he quickly climbed the social ladder to become the respected Director of the National Theatre in Prague. Although he remained a loyal Old Czech throughout his life, he always highlighted his detachment from con-servative ideological trends while expressing a kinship with the contemporary artistic environment. By making use of the Swiss literary historian Jérôme Meizoz's concept of posture, this article views Šubert's life strategies as an identity consciously formed in social interactions.
Keywords: František Adolf Šubert – individuality – National Theatre – national identity – patriotism – Old Czechs – life trajectory
design by Bedřich Vémola
