Authors
Jan JANDOUREK
Sociologist, writer and essayist Jan Jandourek was born on 12 May 1965 in Nové Město nad Metují. From 1984 to 1989, he studied Catholic theology in Litoměřice and from 1993 to 2001 sociology at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University, Prague. He participated in the spiritual administration of the Roman Catholic Church, was a member of the editorial staff of the Catholic magazine Anno Domini and then of the weekly Český týdeník. Currently, he is on the editorial staff of the review Souvislosti (Connections). From 2000 to when it was closed down, he was teaching at the Centre of Comparative Literature at the Faculty of Arts, Charles University. Today, he cooperates closely with the daily Mladá fronta Dnes. He is a priest in the Old Catholic church and also an editor of a quarterly of media criticism, Media Studies. In 2006, Jandourek started his own publishing house Tartaros. He lives in Prague.
Jan Jandourek is the author of books focusing on religion and his point of view varies from critical (Pagan Christian Mediations – Pohanokřesťanské meditace) to one cherishing the positive (Saints and Heretics of World Religions – Svatí a kacíři světových náboženství; When the Pope Is Leaving – Když papež odchází). He has also written books on sociology (An Introduction to Sociology; The Dictionary of Sociology). He has published interviews with two Catholic priests Tomáš Halík (I Asked the Paths – Ptal jsem se cest) and Václav Malík (In Search of Truth – Cesta za pravdou). In 1997, he received the prestigious Czech literary prize Cena Jiřího Ortena for his book In the Lion's Den (V jámě lvové), an apocryphal story based on the Book of Daniel.
"The word 'writer' is a label," says Jandourek in an interview and then continues: "Writing is a kind of therapy, but that's nothing new. However, it is also a way in which to entertain others. These are not bad goals, but you don't think about it like that. You just want to write a book, so you do it." This touch of self-therapy is quite recognizable in Jandourek's writing. Personal experiences are revealed and evaluated; the schizophrenia of faith and doubt and of faithfulness and betrayal is present together with an investment in carnal love, in a relationship with a particular woman and where love of women in general stands opposed to the spiritual love dedicated to God. This is a very important topic which the author explored mainly at the beginning of his writing career. It was best embodied in the character of a Catholic priest gone astray who, much the same as Jandourek himself, witnessed the "Velvet Revolution" of 1989 in a seminary in Litoměřice and who rebelled against the demands of the church, namely celibacy when facing the order of the new era. This critical eye, which concentrates on the Catholic Church, is typical of the majority of Jandourek's works and foreshadows the fact that the author has not yet settled the quarrel with this episode of his personal life. Other areas with which Jandourek has been inspired in his fiction include his work as a journalist in Czech newspapers and as a university teacher. These topics touch on the problem of pulp fiction and the peculiarities and traps of the media world. Jandourek's favourite literary genre is the detective story. He did away with the endless desire of a writer to become rich and read by thousands, in his book, Pulp (Škvár). Its protagonist, a young writer Kamil decides to be avenged on the literary world and critics and writes a successful text created according to the well-tried recipe of pulp fiction.
Jandourek's criminal story Murder (Mord) was inspired by classic detective stories. A high school teacher, a smart amateur detective, off his own bat tries to solve a case. On the other hand, the novel, Bomb Under the Bed (Kniha pod postelí) is a mixture of a detective story and a critique of the intrusive world of today's media. The last to date novel of Jandourek's, Murder Is Beautiful (Vražda je krásná) makes use of sci-fi literature and again, detective fiction. And again, the protagonist has some of the author's favourite qualities: he is a writer, an amateur detective and philosopher all in one. He is thus able to solve brilliantly the mystery of serial murders while at the same time contemplate the meaning of a world that is falling apart, heading straight for a fall.
Jandourek's stories are sophisticated and can be read easily and their pace is stunning, but sometimes they are burdened by the intellectual pretensions of an author who wants to demonstrate his detachment and theoretical superiority. This enforced search for multiple meanings leads to inconsistencies and may even be a sign of Jandourek's jealousy at the success of commercial literature.
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This portrait was updated 1st December 2006.
En français 
Jan JANDOUREK, En français.doc
