Чешкият мотив за свободата в писмата и документите на Георги Марков

This article examines the letters and documents from Georgi Markov’s archive. The Czech element in it is seen as a symbol of disobedience and revolt since it is related to the events of the Prague Spring and the author’s attitude towards this key moment in Post-World War II European history; an attitude shown more tacitly or explicitly in Bulgaria and on the Western radio stations. “I Was Him” is the play marking a point of no return after which Markov had to leave Bulgaria in 1969. The facts and what has been hushed from the already published writer’s archive, as well as his correspondence with Milosh Voita and Jan Koska, are being discussed in the context of their respective times. From the personal correspondence of Georgi Markov, we can see his desire for a fulfilling life with the ones close to him, his love for Bulgaria and the absence of pathetic or heroic gestures. Freedom in this Bulgarian writer is part of his authentic desire to live according to a personal philosophy where writing occupies a crucial place; very important for the writer are a few of his friends, especially his parents in Bulgaria for whom he has a sense of guilt – after his father’s death Markov is overcome by the feeling of intolerance for the Bulgarian political and social status quo. The Czech motif for freedom in Markov’s letters and documents is like “a life with the others” where the individual and his or her place matter.