Abstract
Paul Claudel's Prague years (end of 1909 - early Spring of 1911) left a distinctive imprint in Czech literary modernism, particularly in the works of his local friends and collaborators. The article analyzes Claudel's Prague encounters and their creative impact within the contemporary changes in the modernist movement.
Heated debates between the French poet and playwright and his Czech partners (M. Marten, O.
Theer, Z. Braunerová) as well as the critical response to Claudel's poetic drama in both Czech and German cultures represent an alternative, polemic path of the Central European identity quest.
These debates also offer another viewpoint on changes within the word-image paradigm that later in the avant-garde movements shifted towards the totality of the image.