Abstract
Confence presentation of paper: Turbulent History of Czech Sociology in 1948 - 1969 Through the Eyes of Contemporaries. 9th European Social Sciecne History Conference in Glasgow, UK. Presenter in section ORA09:Czech Oral History and chair in ORA05:Nostalgia and Gender Narratives.
The subject of this paper is a presentation of the partial results of a project, which describes the development of Czech sociology after 1945 from the perspective of its participants. Personal memories and individual life histories show how the profound transformations of Czech society in the second half of the 20th century influenced the functioning and general nature of sociology, science about the society.
The aim of the project is to fill blank spaces in the knowledge of the history of Czech sociology, which were caused by the intervention and impact of the communist regime. In 1948 sociology, as a scientific discipline, was abolished as well as all university lectures in sociology.
The nature of Czech sociology and the fate of sociologists in the forthcomming decade, until its new constitution in the early 60s, and even later in the 60s, has not been adequatedly studied. Available written sources had to be supplemented with narratives of those who worked as sociologists in this period.
These scientists can provide us a comprehensive point of view of not only changes in sociology itself, but also of the whole Czech society. Abolishment of institutionalized sociology after 1948, reconstitution of sociology in the beginning of 1960s, political intervention and abolishment of science institutions after 1968 are all historical events which were influencing lifes of the scientists and the character of this discipline.
This paper is focusing on the mutual development of life histories of sociologists as well as sociology itself.