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Despite former dissident and Czech president Václav Havel?s widespread influence, his presidency has not been seriously considered as a framework for how one should head a government. Havel is known for and evaluated most in terms of his sweeping moral principles and philosophical treatises, but I wish to know whether his presidency passes the test that he provides so clearly in his written works and speeches. Specifically, I will examine how Havel?s philosophical ideas translate to his political acts as president. I will select one international, one domestic, and one economic policy that Havel actively advocated for and instituted, and which prima facie appears to contradict his political philosophy. I will then examine these policies through the lens of his prior-written plays and philosophical treatises to determine whether his political theory works in practice, whether his actions can be justified in the terms of his theory, and whether it constitutes a viable method of governing. Essentially, it will be a study in theory and practice. My lens is rather narrow as I will be looking at specific presidential acts of Havel?s and how they relate to his worldview. In doing these things, I hope to ascertain the practical manifestations of and/or inconsistencies in Havel?s conception of a good president. The end result of my thesis will either confirm scholarly suspicions of Havel?s presidential mediocrity, or prove the opposite and thereby serve as an externally applicable framework for morally and politically sound action.

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Havelian Presidency: A Study in Theory & Practice

Despite former dissident and Czech president Václav Havel?s widespread influence, his presidency has not been seriously considered as a framework for how one should head a government. Havel is known for and evaluated most in terms of his sweeping moral principles and philosophical treatises, but I wish to know whether his presidency passes the test that he provides so clearly in his written works and speeches. Specifically, I will examine how Havel?s philosophical ideas translate to his political acts as president. I will select one international, one domestic, and one economic policy that Havel actively advocated for and instituted, and which prima facie appears to contradict his political philosophy. I will then examine these policies through the lens of his prior-written plays and philosophical treatises to determine whether his political theory works in practice, whether his actions can be justified in the terms of his theory, and whether it constitutes a viable method of governing. Essentially, it will be a study in theory and practice. My lens is rather narrow as I will be looking at specific presidential acts of Havel?s and how they relate to his worldview. In doing these things, I hope to ascertain the practical manifestations of and/or inconsistencies in Havel?s conception of a good president. The end result of my thesis will either confirm scholarly suspicions of Havel?s presidential mediocrity, or prove the opposite and thereby serve as an externally applicable framework for morally and politically sound action.

 

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