The Prague Spring: in the midst of the Cold War, the events of one year helped lead to the freedom of Czechoslovakia.PROLOGUE pro·logue also pro·log n. 1. An introduction or preface, especially a poem recited to introduce a play. 2. An introduction or introductory chapter, as to a novel. 3. An introductory act, event, or period. The wounds from World War II [1939-1945] had barely begun to heal before the Cold War took its place. By 1948, the Soviet Union controlled almost all of Eastern Europe Eastern Europe The countries of eastern Europe, especially those that were allied with the USSR in the Warsaw Pact, which was established in 1955 and dissolved in 1991. . In these Soviet.bloc countries, Communist governments punished most forms of free expression. People lived in constant fear of informers and secret police. But not even Communist countries could keep out all the changes of the 1960s. Then came the remarkable year of 1968. In countries everywhere, a spirit of rebellion caused young people to demonstrate against their governments. Events were especially dramatic in Prague, the capital of the Soviet-bloc country of Czechoslovakia. There, 1968 climaxed in a season of hope that historians call the Prague Spring Prague Spring: see Prague and Czechoslovakia. Prague Spring (1968) Brief period of liberalization in Czechoslovakia under Alexander Dubcek. . SCENE ONE Narrator NARRATOR. A pleader who draws narrs serviens narrator, a sergeant at law. Fleta, 1. 2, c. 37. Obsolete. A: By 1968, the people of Prague are restless. Writers and journalists boldly criticize the government, and students protest in the streets. Narrator B: In January, the Central Committee of the Communist Party Central Committee of the Communist Party can refer to:
v. star·tled, star·tling, star·tles v.tr. 1. To cause to make a quick involuntary movement or start. 2. To alarm, frighten, or surprise suddenly. See Synonyms at frighten. press freedoms. At gathering places like a coffee shop near Charles University Charles University, at Prague, Czech Republic; also called Univ. of Prague. The oldest and one of the most important universities of central Europe, it was founded in 1348 by Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, for whom it is named. , students are amazed a·maze v. a·mazed, a·maz·ing, a·maz·es v.tr. 1. To affect with great wonder; astonish. See Synonyms at surprise. 2. Obsolete To bewilder; perplex. v.intr. at the change. Student 1: Hey, can you believe this? I just bought a copy of the Literary Journal--and nobody arrested me! Student 2: Something's going on. Last week at the district party meeting, people were stamping their feet and booing the party officials! Student 1: It must be because of Dubcek. Did you hear what he said--that socialism must keep its human face! Student 2: Brezhnev will hate that! Narrator C: Leonid Brezhnev Noun 1. Leonid Brezhnev - Soviet statesman who became president of the Soviet Union (1906-1982) Brezhnev, Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev is the most powerful man in the Soviet Union. The students know that the stern Soviet leader will be furious at the freedoms being allowed in Czechoslovakia. In private, Dubcek and his wife, Anna, express their fears. Anna Dubcek: So much has happened so fast. I know the Czech people long for more freedom, but I'm worried. Alexander Dubcek: I am, too. Many old-line party people are just waiting for me to make a mistake. We have to reform the system--but not so quickly that the Soviets will crack down on us. Narrator D: Dubcek's delicate balancing act is just beginning. SCENE TWO Narrator E: Dubcek is hoping to make changes slowly. But the students of Prague are less patient. With every little taste of freedom, they want more. Narrator A: That year, at the annual May Day parade, crowds of Czechs surround First Secretary Dubcek, trying to shake his hand. In the warm spring weather, Prague seems to be bursting at the seams. But meanwhile, in Moscow, the Soviet capital ... Leonid Brezhnev: Comrades, we meet to discuss the disturbing situation in Prague. Clearly, Dubcek has let the press and the students run wild. Soviet official: Think of what could happen. If we lose Czechoslovakia from our alliance, then other countries will feel free to leave. In Warsaw, the students are already calling for a Polish Dubcek. Brezhnev: We must defend socialism! Put our troops on the alert. Narrator B: A massive circle of troops from the Soviet-bloc countries begins to form around Czechoslovakia. SCENE THREE Narrator C: That spring and summer, the movements of Soviet-bloc troops cause Dubcek unending worry. In the early morning of July 31, several Czech workers see the First Secretary walking alone on the quiet Prague streets. Worker 1: Comrade Dubcek, what are you doing up at this hour? Dubcek: Ah, friends, I have not slept in weeks. Worker 2: Tell us the truth. Are the Soviets planning to shut down newspapers and arrest our leaders? Dubcek: We are in a very tough spot. We must keep true to our goals. But believe me--it will be a disaster if we anger our Soviet friends. Narrator D: The crisis is even worse than Dubcek thinks. The Soviets are hoping to overthrow Dubcek with the help of members of the Czech government loyal to the Soviet Union. On August 20, during a long, stressful meeting of the Czech ruling body ... Dubcek: Gentlemen, we have been here for hours, arguing among ourselves. Why don't we agree that we have made a lot of progress in the last months? Vasil Bilak: Because this government is in serious trouble, Comrade Dubcek. The very existence of socialism here is in danger. Neither I nor our Soviet brothers will stand for it. Narrator E: The parties are still arguing at 11:30 that night when Premier Oldrich Cernik enters the room. Oldrich Cernik: First Secretary, the armies of the Soviet Union and its allies have crossed our borders. We are being occupied. Narrator A: Dubcek is stunned stun tr.v. stunned, stun·ning, stuns 1. To daze or render senseless, by or as if by a blow. 2. To overwhelm or daze with a loud noise. 3. . Dubcek: This is a tragedy. I honestly did not believe that they would take this step against us. Narrator B: To avoid bloodshed blood·shed n. The shedding of blood, especially the injury or killing of people. bloodshed Noun slaughter; killing Noun 1. , Dubcek orders the Czech Army not to resist. Within hours, KCB KCB (in Britain) Knight Commander of the Bath agents arrest him and his allies on the Central Committee. SCENE FOUR Narrator C: Thousands of tanks and hundreds of thousands of soldiers pour over the borders of East Germany East Germany: see Germany. , Poland, and Hungary into Czechoslovakia. By the time the tanks roll into Prague in the morning, students are waiting for them. Student 3: I'll stand in front of that tank. They won't dare run us over. Student 4: You're crazy! They don't care
"Don't Care" is a 1994 (see 1994 in music) single by American death metal band Obituary. . Quick, let's get those cars to block the intersection. Narrator D: Some students try to reason with the tank drivers, most of whom are young Russian peasants. Or they insult the drivers. Student 5: Ivan, go home! What are you doing here? Student 6: How would you like it if foreigners Foreigners alienage the condition of being an alien. androlepsy Law. the seizure of foreign subjects to enforce a claim for justice or other right against their nation. gypsyologist, gipsyologist Rare. took away your freedom? Tank driver: What do you mean? This is my job. I have my orders. Student 7: So did the Nazis! Narrator E: Suddenly, a bottle flies through the air and smashes against one of the tanks. Then ... Student 8: Look out! They're actually going to fire at us! Student 9: Murderers! Narrator A: As soldiers fire on the crowds, blood spills into the streets. Some students fight back with Molotov cocktails [bottles filled with gasoline]. Radio Prague Radio Prague (Czech: Český rozhlas 7 - Radio Praha) is the official international broadcasting station of the Czech Republic. Radio Prague broadcasts in six languages: English, German, French, Spanish, Czech and Russian. , over the airwaves airwaves Noun, pl Informal radio waves used in radio and television broadcasting and through loudspeakers, tries to calm the students. Radio Prague announcer: Brothers, don't use weapons against the invaders. Don't provoke them! Narrator B: As night falls, the tanks occupy the city. Students fade into the darkness, uncertain of what to do. SCENE FIVE Narrator C: But the occupation does not completely silence the protesters. At one underground newspaper ... Newspaper editor: The Soviets expected their sympathizers to rise up and seize power from Dubcek. Instead, the Czech Party Congress has declared the invasion to be illegal. Newspaper reporter: The whole world is watching film of the tanks in the streets of Prague--and governments are condemning the invasion. Narrator D: In Moscow, Brezhnev confronts Dubcek and the other imprisoned im·pris·on tr.v. im·pris·oned, im·pris·on·ing, im·pris·ons To put in or as if in prison; confine. [Middle English emprisonen, from Old French emprisoner : en- Czech leaders. Brezhnev: Comrade Dubcek, why did you make me do this? We are writing a new agreement between our countries, restoring order in Czechoslovakia--and you will sign it. Narrator E: Brezhnev forces them to sign the Moscow Protocol--a document that eliminates all of Czechoslovakia's new freedoms. Dubcek returns to Prague, pleading for the Czech people to accept these "temporary measures." Narrator A: The Moscow Protocol forces many protest leaders to go into hiding. In April 1969, Dubcek is removed as First Secretary. By then, Prague Spring and the year 1968 have passed into history. The experiment of "socialism with a human face Socialism with a human face (in Czech: socialismus s lidskou tváří, in Slovak: socializmus s ľudskou tvárou) was a political programme announced by Alexander Dubček and his colleagues when he became the chairman of the Communist Party of " is over--for now. EPILOGUE ep·i·logue also ep·i·log n. 1. a. A short poem or speech spoken directly to the audience following the conclusion of a play. b. The performer who delivers such a short poem or speech. 2. But the events of 1968 continued to encourage an underground resistance in Czechoslovakia. Playwright Vaclav Havel Noun 1. Vaclav Havel - Czech dramatist and statesman whose plays opposed totalitarianism and who served as president of Czechoslovakia from 1989 to 1992 and president of the Czech Republic since 1993 (born in 1936) Havel , who led resistance groups against the Communists, later described the impact of the Prague Spring. "People woke up and showed their will, their desire for freedom," Havel said. Over time, that desire helped loosen the iron grip of the Soviet Union. In 1989, Havel led a bloodless blood·less adj. 1. Deficient in or lacking blood. 2. Pale and anemic in color: smiled with bloodless lips. 3. change of power called the Velvet Revolution The "Velvet Revolution" (Czech: sametová revoluce, Slovak: nežná revolúcia) (November 16 – December 29 1989) refers to a non-violent revolution in Czechoslovakia that saw the , and won election as President of the country. Alexander Dubcek returned to become Chairman of the first Federal Assembly. In 1993, Dubcek's original homeland, Slovakia, parted from the Czech Republic Czech Republic, Czech Česká Republika (2005 est. pop. 10,241,000), republic, 29,677 sq mi (78,864 sq km), central Europe. It is bordered by Slovakia on the east, Austria on the south, Germany on the west, and Poland on the north. and became an independent nation. Characters * Students 1-9 Alexander Dubcek [DOOB-chek], First Secretary of the Czechoslovakian Communist Party Communist party, in China Communist party, in China, ruling party of the world's most populous nation since 1949 and most important Communist party in the world since the disintegration of the USSR in 1991. Anna Dubcek, his wife Leonid Brezhnev [BRESHZ.nef], leader of the Soviet Union Soviet official * Workers 1 & 2 Vasil Bilak [BEE-lak], Czechoslovakian Communist Party official Oldrich Cernik, Czechoslovakian Premier * Tank driver Radio Prague announcer * Newspaper editor * Newspaper reporter Narrators A-E A-E, AE above-elbow; see under amputation. * An asterisk (1) See Asterisk PBX. (2) In programming, the asterisk or "star" symbol (*) means multiplication. For example, 10 * 7 means 10 multiplied by 7. The * is also a key on computer keypads for entering expressions using multiplication. indicates an imaginary character. All others were real people. Words to Know * Cold War: worldwide struggle for power between the Soviet Union and Western countries, 1945-1991. * Communist: government based on state ownership of property, typically dictatorial; to most believers an advanced form of socialism. * KGB KGB: see secret police. KGB Russian Komitet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosti (“Committee for State Security”) Soviet agency responsible for intelligence, counterintelligence, and internal security. : Soviet intelligence agency. * socialism: political philosophy based on all people sharing in the work and products of society. * Soviet bloc: the countries of Eastern Europe controlled by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Think About It 1. Which incident do you think triggered the end of the "Prague Spring"? Give reasons for your answer. 2. Would you have signed the Moscow Protocol? Why or why not? Objectives Students should be able to: * define the terms Cold War and Soviet bloc. * see how a brief period in history set a course for change in Czechoslovakia. Word to Know * bloc: a group of people, organizations, or nations united in a single purpose or under a treaty. Background The Soviet bloc--also called the Eastern or Communist bloc--consisted of the Soviet Union and Soviet-dominated Eastern European countries, including Bulgaria, Czechoslovakia, East Germany, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and, until 1961, Albania. Historians also speak of a Western bloc The Western Bloc during the Cold War refers to the powers allied with the United States and NATO against the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact. The latter were referred to as the Eastern Bloc, a more common term in English than Western Bloc , made up of the U.S. and its allies. (For a brief chronology chronology, n the arrangement of events in a time sequence, usually from the beginning to the end of an event. of the Cold War, see the Skills Reproducible on p. T-6.) Critical Thinking COMPREHENSION: When Soviet leaders sent troops into Prague, what did they expect their Czech sympathizers to do? (rise up and seize power from Dubcek) MAKING INFERENCES: Why do you think Dubcek was surprised when the troops arrived? (He thought reforms were slow enough to not provoke the Soviets; other answers possible.) Activity LIVING HISTORY: The Cold War profoundly influenced the people of its time. Have students query members of their parents' or grandparents' generation about that period's significance. What were their greatest fears? How did they see the U.S. role in the world then? STANDARD SOCIAL STUDIES, GRADES 5-8 Time, continuity, and change: The Czechs' push for freedom was quashed b9 the Soviet Union in 1968, but it helped lead to Communism's eventual downfall. RESOURCES Sgmynkywicz, Jeffrey B., Vaclav Havel and the Velvet Revolution [Silver Burdett Press, 1995]. Grades 6 & up. Taylor, David, The Cold War [Heinemann, 2001]. Grades 5-9. WEB SITES BBC BBC in full British Broadcasting Corp. Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927. : The Prague Spring news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/ world/europe/155500.stm CNN CNN or Cable News Network Subsidiary company of Turner Broadcasting Systems. It was created by Ted Turner in 1980 to present 24-hour live news broadcasts, using satellites to transmit reports from news bureaus around the world. : The Cold War cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war * Write the letter of the correct answer on the line before each question. --11. In 1968, Prague was the capital of which country? A. Czechoslovakia C. Poland B. Czech Republic D. Slovakia --12. During the Cold War, what kind of government did Soviet-bloc countries have? A. capitalist C. democratic B. Communist D. monarchy --13. During the Prague Spring, who was the most powerful leader in the Soviet Union? A. Leonid Brezhnev C. Nikita Khrushchev B. Alexander Dubcek D. Vladimir Putin --14. Which Soviet-bloc leader was willing to relax some of the restrictions under Soviet rule? A. Leonid Brezhnev C. Nikita Khrushchev B. Alexander Dubcek D. Vladimir Putin --15. What disturbed the Soviet leaders? A. informers C. secret police B. protests in D. socialism the streets --16. From the spring into the summer of 1968, what worried Alexander Dubcek? A. KGB agents C. movements of Soviet troops B. loosening D. plays of Vaclav Havel restrictions --17. What was sent to break up the student protests? A. bulldozers C. Soviet-bloc tanks B. Czech Army D. UN peacekeepers --18. The staff at Radio Prague apparently sympathized with which group? A. Dubcek's opponents C. Russian tank drivers B. KGB agents D. student protesters --19. Which of the following eliminated the Czech people's new freedoms? A. Emancipation C. Prague Spring Proclamation B. Moscow Protocol D. Velvet Revolution 20. The bloodless change of power in 1989, which brought about democratic presidential elections, is known as what? A. Czech Party C. Velvet Revolution Congress B. Prague Summer D. War of the Roses ANSWERS 11. A 12. B 13. A 14. B 15. B 16. C 17. C 18. D 19. B 20. C |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion