První světová válka v prezidentských projevech

The paper focuses on reflection of the First World War in presidential speeches in years 1990–2013. This period delimits mandates of former Czech presidents Václav Havel and Václav Klaus. Ways in which both presidents referred to the historical event and in which they utilized its interpretation for legitimization of their political goals are compared. As its theoretical framework, the study utilizes an approach that has been developed by Jeffrey Alexander and Philip Smith as part of their program in cultural sociology. The study aims to identify the most significant cultural codes and narrative strategies of the analyzed speeches and to relate them to (supra)nationalistic metanarratives that they help to maintain. The study also points to the fact that presidential speeches represent an important case of utilization of past for the purposes of legitimization of state policy while also being a practice with which states are established.