He tries to explain why man behaves most improbably, strangely, at variance with his nature, how it is possible for instance that a calm, rather neutral petty bourgeois is all of a sudden capable of commanding a concentration camp, burning to death or gassing thousands of people, and afterwards returning to his clerk's life as if nothing happened,

Vaclav Havel

Vaclav Havel

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The tragedy of modern man is not that he knows less and less about the meaning of his own life, but that it bothers him less and less.

— Vaclav Havel

Poles are able to reflect their history, they respect it. Who knows if anybody will remember when we commemorate our 25 years [since the 1989 Velvet Revolution].

— Vaclav Havel

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against its sense, its spirit.

— Vaclav Havel

I still very well remember the moment in 1978 when me and my friends learned that Karol Wojtyla was elected the pope. It was a moment of an immense joy for us. I even think that we were so delighted that we danced for joy.

— Vaclav Havel

They deserve our admiration, not because they suffered in prison for 25 days, but because they assumed the responsibility and, within their limit, wanted to do something positive,

— Vaclav Havel

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