Norbert Frýd
Encyclopedia
Norbert Frýd (21 April 1913 – 18 March 1976) was a Czech writer
, journalist
and diplomat
. He is known mainly for his autobiographical novel
Krabice živých (A Box of Lives, 1956), in which he describes his experiences in Nazi concentration camps
. During the World War II
, he was imprisoned in the Theresienstadt
, Auschwitz
and Dachau-Kaufering
concentration camps.
to a family of Jewish merchants. His father was a Czech Jew and his mother came from a German
Jewish family. He studied at the German gymnasium
in his home town, graduating in 1932. He went on to study the Faculty of Law of the Charles University in Prague
. After graduating in 1937 he studied for a doctorate in modern literature at the Faculty of Arts and Philosophy. He submitted his thesis on "The Origins of Czech Surrealism" in 1939 but was not awarded his Ph.D. until 1945. In the mid-1930s, he became involved with the "Leftist Front" cultural and political movement in Prague. He was a close collaborator with Emil František Burian
, and became friends with various Jewish artists, such as Hanuš Bonn, Robert Guttmannn, Jindřich Heisler, Jiří Orten
and Josef Taussig
. It was while working at Burian's theatre that his collaborative partnership with the composer Karel Reiner
began. Together, they created the farce
Mistr Pleticha, based on the French original, Maître Patelin. Reiner composed the music and Frýd wrote the lyrics.Kuna (2008), p. 72 In 1936 he began working as a lyricist, editor and script-writer for Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer and RKO Radiofilm. In 1939, when Jews were excluded from public employment, he was forced to work as a manual laborer not allowed to work for anyone outside Prague's Jewish community.
In November 1942, Frýd was imprisoned in *the ghetto at Theresienstadt, where he became involved in the clandestine cultural life of the community. He wrote a collection of nursery rhymes, Abeceda květovaného koně, which later he and Karel Reiner rearranged into a set of children's songs and choruses that were successfully performed in the ghetto.Kuna (2008), p. 120 He also directed the play Esther (with music by Reiner). In Autumn 1944, he was transported to Auschwitz concentration camp, along with all the other artists imprisoned in Theresienstadt.Kuna (2008), p. 156In September/October 1944, the Nazis sent the inmates from Theresienstadt to Auschwitz in 11 transports. Of 18,402 prisoners, only 1574 survived and saw the end of the war. Norbert Frýd was deported to Auschwitz in the first transport, on 28 September 1944. At Auschwitz, he spent several nights sitting (together with thousands of other people) on a concrete floor in block "E2", located on the site of the former Roma camp.Kuna (2008), p. 158 Subsequently, he was transferred to Dachau-Kaufering. "I was in Dachau-Kaufering at the end of 1944", he later remembered, "when the boys from all over Europe — French, Dutch, Germans, Poles, Yugoslavs, Greeks, we Czechs and I don't know who else — began to sing The Internationale
in their mother languages, all together. It was a sound like I'd never heard before." In April 1945, as the SS were starting to evacuate the camps, he managed to escape. Frýd's father, brother and wife died in the concentration camps and he appears to have been the only member of his family to survive the Holocaust. During the immediate postwar period, he helped the Americans as an interpreter during the interrogation of the Dachau SS guards. He returned to Prague on 22 May 1945, together with his friend Karel Reiner.Kuna (2008), p. 165
After the war, he worked as a journalist and an official of the Czechoslovak Communist Party. In 1946, he changed his name to Frýd. A year later, in 1947, he became a cultural diplomatic attaché
in Mexico
and subsequently served in various diplomatic posts in Latin America
and the U.S. After a brief period of employment with Czechoslovak Radio from 1951-1953, he embarked on a career as a freelance writer. His childhood friend, the writer Lenka Reinerová
, recalled in an interview how he had helped her when she was arrested in 1952. She remembered him as being "the only person who protested against my arrest by the communist authorities.After the war, Reinerová spent 15 months in a communist prison. You know, I remembered him as a cheerful guy who was always playing the guitar and singing. Then he was taken in a transport to the camps. He came back from Dachau, but he was a different person. No guitar, no singing. When I gave him my hand, I realized the terrible change. He had cold moist hands, as if you were touching a corpse. He suffered from depression and anxiety. He had to cope with terrible fear. And yet he wasn't scared and went to the communist Department of the Interior on my behalf", she said.
From 1951 until the early 1970s, he served as a delegate to UNESCO
.
Frýd died in Prague in 1976.
and German
. The main theme of his works was the fate of Czech Jews. In the novel Krabice živých, he attempted to provide a detailed psychological picture of concentration camp prisoners and their SS guards. He also produced short stories, news reports and travel books. During his career, he worked for the theatre, radio and television. Children's literature was another important part of his work. As well as children's books he also wrote scripts for children's films. He illustrated his books with photographs taken during his extensive travels.
The novel includes autobiographical elements (like Roubík's brother in the novel, the author's brother Jan died in a concentration camp) and attempts to document life in the inhumane environment of a concentration camp. It offers philosophical insights while attempting to provide an objective picture of the camp's everyday reality. The author reflects on how to maintain human dignity and cope with evil in the extraordinary circumstances of the camp.
The novel was acclaimed by contemporary critics, and republished in numerous editions and translations.
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and diplomat
Diplomat
A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...
. He is known mainly for his autobiographical novel
Autobiographical novel
An autobiographical novel is a form of novel using autofiction techniques, or the merging of autobiographical and fiction elements. The literary technique is distinguished from an autobiography or memoir by the stipulation of being fiction...
Krabice živých (A Box of Lives, 1956), in which he describes his experiences in Nazi concentration camps
Nazi concentration camps
Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled. The first Nazi concentration camps set up in Germany were greatly expanded after the Reichstag fire of 1933, and were intended to hold political prisoners and opponents of the regime...
. During the World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he was imprisoned in the Theresienstadt
Theresienstadt concentration camp
Theresienstadt concentration camp was a Nazi German ghetto during World War II. It was established by the Gestapo in the fortress and garrison city of Terezín , located in what is now the Czech Republic.-History:The fortress of Terezín was constructed between the years 1780 and 1790 by the orders...
, Auschwitz
Auschwitz concentration camp
Concentration camp Auschwitz was a network of Nazi concentration and extermination camps built and operated by the Third Reich in Polish areas annexed by Nazi Germany during World War II...
and Dachau-Kaufering
Kaufering concentration camp
Kaufering concentration camps were a network of subsidiary camps of the Dachau concentration camp.With the intensification of the Allied air war against German industrial and military enterprises after 1943, the German Armaments Ministry and the Schutzstaffel agreed to accelerate construction of...
concentration camps.
Biography
Norbert Fried was born in České BudějoviceCeské Budejovice
České Budějovice is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the largest city in the South Bohemian Region and is the political and commercial capital of the region and centre of the Roman Catholic Diocese of České Budějovice and of the University of South Bohemia and the Academy of Sciences...
to a family of Jewish merchants. His father was a Czech Jew and his mother came from a German
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
Jewish family. He studied at the German gymnasium
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
in his home town, graduating in 1932. He went on to study the Faculty of Law of the Charles University in Prague
Charles University in Prague
Charles University in Prague is the oldest and largest university in the Czech Republic. Founded in 1348, it was the first university in Central Europe and is also considered the earliest German university...
. After graduating in 1937 he studied for a doctorate in modern literature at the Faculty of Arts and Philosophy. He submitted his thesis on "The Origins of Czech Surrealism" in 1939 but was not awarded his Ph.D. until 1945. In the mid-1930s, he became involved with the "Leftist Front" cultural and political movement in Prague. He was a close collaborator with Emil František Burian
Emil František Burian
Emil František Burian was a Czech poet, journalist, singer, actor, musician, composer, dramatic adviser, playwright and director. He was also active in Communist Party of Czechoslovakia politics.- Life :...
, and became friends with various Jewish artists, such as Hanuš Bonn, Robert Guttmannn, Jindřich Heisler, Jiří Orten
Jirí Orten
Jiří Orten was a Czech poet. His work was influenced by surrealism and folklore. His first book of poems, Čítanka jaro , came out in 1939. He spent time in Paris, but ultimately returned to Prague...
and Josef Taussig
Josef Taussig
Josef Taussig was a Czech journalist.Taussig was a journalist with the youth magazine "Hej rup". In 1942 he was transported to Theresienstadt but survived by using his skills as an amateur trombonist to play with Martin Roman's Ghetto Swingers...
. It was while working at Burian's theatre that his collaborative partnership with the composer Karel Reiner
Karel Reiner
Karel Reiner was a Czech composer and pianist, persecuted by Nazis as a Jew and by communists as a formalist. He was the only classical composer to survive the concentration camp in Theresienstadt.- Life :...
began. Together, they created the farce
Farce
In theatre, a farce is a comedy which aims at entertaining the audience by means of unlikely, extravagant, and improbable situations, disguise and mistaken identity, verbal humour of varying degrees of sophistication, which may include word play, and a fast-paced plot whose speed usually increases,...
Mistr Pleticha, based on the French original, Maître Patelin. Reiner composed the music and Frýd wrote the lyrics.Kuna (2008), p. 72 In 1936 he began working as a lyricist, editor and script-writer for Metro–Goldwyn–Mayer and RKO Radiofilm. In 1939, when Jews were excluded from public employment, he was forced to work as a manual laborer not allowed to work for anyone outside Prague's Jewish community.
The Internationale
The Internationale is a famous socialist, communist, social-democratic and anarchist anthem.The Internationale became the anthem of international socialism, and gained particular fame under the Soviet Union from 1922 to 1944, when it was that communist state's de facto central anthem...
in their mother languages, all together. It was a sound like I'd never heard before." In April 1945, as the SS were starting to evacuate the camps, he managed to escape. Frýd's father, brother and wife died in the concentration camps and he appears to have been the only member of his family to survive the Holocaust. During the immediate postwar period, he helped the Americans as an interpreter during the interrogation of the Dachau SS guards. He returned to Prague on 22 May 1945, together with his friend Karel Reiner.Kuna (2008), p. 165
After the war, he worked as a journalist and an official of the Czechoslovak Communist Party. In 1946, he changed his name to Frýd. A year later, in 1947, he became a cultural diplomatic attaché
Cultural attaché
A cultural attaché is a diplomat with special responsibility for promoting the culture of his or her homeland. The position has been used as an official cover for intelligence agents. Historically, the post has often been filled by writers and artists, giving them a steady income, allowing them to...
in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and subsequently served in various diplomatic posts in Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
and the U.S. After a brief period of employment with Czechoslovak Radio from 1951-1953, he embarked on a career as a freelance writer. His childhood friend, the writer Lenka Reinerová
Lenka Reinerová
Lenka Reinerová was an author from the Czech Republic who wrote exclusively in German. She was born in Prague.- Life :...
, recalled in an interview how he had helped her when she was arrested in 1952. She remembered him as being "the only person who protested against my arrest by the communist authorities.After the war, Reinerová spent 15 months in a communist prison. You know, I remembered him as a cheerful guy who was always playing the guitar and singing. Then he was taken in a transport to the camps. He came back from Dachau, but he was a different person. No guitar, no singing. When I gave him my hand, I realized the terrible change. He had cold moist hands, as if you were touching a corpse. He suffered from depression and anxiety. He had to cope with terrible fear. And yet he wasn't scared and went to the communist Department of the Interior on my behalf", she said.
From 1951 until the early 1970s, he served as a delegate to UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
.
Frýd died in Prague in 1976.
Style
Frýd published his first literary efforts in 1929 in the magazine Tramp. He wrote in both CzechCzech language
Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
. The main theme of his works was the fate of Czech Jews. In the novel Krabice živých, he attempted to provide a detailed psychological picture of concentration camp prisoners and their SS guards. He also produced short stories, news reports and travel books. During his career, he worked for the theatre, radio and television. Children's literature was another important part of his work. As well as children's books he also wrote scripts for children's films. He illustrated his books with photographs taken during his extensive travels.
Krabice živých (A Box of Lives)
Frýd completed his most successful novel in 1956. The plot is set in the last months of 1944, in the fictional concentration camp of Gigling. The main character, the young intellectual Zdeněk Roubík, is an assistant in the camp office. One of his jobs is to maintain the card index of the inmates, hence the title of the novel, "A Box of Lives". In the camp, Roubík gradually manages to overcome the apathy and depression caused by the death of his brother and he becomes more actively involved in camp life. The author attempts to depict everyday life, social interactions and relationships in the camp, and the work and hardships of the inmates. The description of the SS guards in the camp is a focus of particular attention.The novel includes autobiographical elements (like Roubík's brother in the novel, the author's brother Jan died in a concentration camp) and attempts to document life in the inhumane environment of a concentration camp. It offers philosophical insights while attempting to provide an objective picture of the camp's everyday reality. The author reflects on how to maintain human dignity and cope with evil in the extraordinary circumstances of the camp.
The novel was acclaimed by contemporary critics, and republished in numerous editions and translations.
Books
- Prag spricht dich an (1933) in German, under the name Norbert Fried
- Pusťte basu do rozhlasu (1937) fairytales, under the pseudonym Nora Fried; in 1972 published under the title Basa tvrdí muziku
- Don Juan jde do divadla (1942) under the pseudonym Emil Junek
- Bratr Jan (1945) under the pseudonym Nora Fried, written in memory of the author's brother Jan, murdered in a concentration camp
- Divná píseň (1946, 1940) banned
- Mexiko je v Americe (1952); in 1958, published under the title Mexické obrázky
- Případ majora Hogana, Druhá smrt Dicka Garzy (1952)
- Studna supů (1953)
- Havíř Gavlas (1953)
- Meč archandělů (1954)
- Usměvavá Guatemala (1955)
- Krabice živých (1956)
- Ztracená stuha (1957)
- Kat nepočká (1958) based on the life story of the actress Anna LetenskáAnna LetenskáAnna Čalounová-Letenská was a Czech theatre and film actress. During the 1930s and 40s, she appeared in twenty-five films. She was murdered in the Nazi concentration camp of Mauthausen....
- S pimprlaty do Kalkaty (1960)
- Živá socha (1961)
- Tři malé ženy (1963) short stories
- Pan Lučavka (1963)
- Sloup vody (1964)
- Prales (1965)
- Posledních sto let - a trilogy describing the assimilation of Czech Jews and their fates during the Holocaust
- Vzorek bez ceny a pan biskup aneb Začátek posledních sto let (1966), Part 1
- Hedvábné starosti aneb Uprostřed posledních sto let (1968) Part 2
- Lahvová pošta aneb Konec posledních sto let (1971) Part 3
- Císařovna (1972)
- Almara plná povídaček (1973)
- Rukama nevinnosti (1974)
- Květovaný kůň (1975, children's book)
- Oživení v sále (1976)
- Tři nepatrní muži (1978) short stories
External links
- Norbert Frýd at WorldCatWorldCatWorldCat is a union catalog which itemizes the collections of 72,000 libraries in 170 countries and territories which participate in the Online Computer Library Center global cooperative...
- Fryd, Dr. Norbert (Theresienstadt Lexikon)