This is Milan Kundera's first novel, originally published in Czechoslovakia in 1967. We get the viewpoints of four different characters, and, together, these give us a full picture of what life was like in Czechoslovakia at that time and the decades beforehand.
The novel is called The Joke because Ludvik's life was ruined by a joke he made (which the leaders of the Communist party overreacted too) and because the people of Czechoslovakia under Stalinism...
This is Milan Kundera's first novel, originally published in Czechoslovakia in 1967. We get the viewpoints of four different characters, and, together, these give us a full picture of what life was like in Czechoslovakia at that time and the decades beforehand.
The novel is called The Joke because Ludvik's life was ruined by a joke he made (which the leaders of the Communist party overreacted too) and because the people of Czechoslovakia under Stalinism were victims to "the joke history played on them." Ludvik essentially became a prisoner in "military service," and Jaroslav feels that he is watching Moravian culture fade before his eyes. Even Zemanek, who betrayed Ludvik and got him ousted from the party, eventually becomes a supporter of a more liberal regime. Overall, the novel shows Kundera's view of how strict and unforgiving the communist party became in this country, to the point that most of the people of Czechoslovakia found that repression of their rights and culture was a daily occurrence.
In Ludvik's eyes, everyday life under Stalinism is devastating.
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