Květuše Kunešová - new associate professor of literary theory

Associate Professor PhDr. Květuše Kunešová, PhD graduated from the Faculty of Arts of Masaryk University in Brno (Latin, French and English Studies), where she also got her PhDr. in 1986 and later her PhD in Romance Studies; she specialises in French literature. She joined the Faculty of Education of the University of Hradec Králové in 1994. Mrs Kunešová works at the Department of French Language and Literature, where she lectures and teaches seminars on literary theory, and the literary and cultural history of France and French-speaking countries. She cooperates with the University of Lille in organising international conferences on young adult literature as the chair of the organisational committee. From 2008 to 2015 she acted as a member of the Advisory Board of the Central European Association for Canadian Studies and as the head of its Czech section.

She frequently attends international conferences in both the Czech Republic and abroad, particularly in France. She has gained international experience from her research stays at universities in France, Belgium and Canada. In 2007, she was awarded a grant by the Canadian Government for Canadian Studies, specifically Quebec literature, and she was lead researcher in three projects devoted to Czech expats in Canada.

Květuše Kunešová wrote three monographs (Exile: Reality and Imagination; Transformation of the Novel Genres; French-Canadian Literature for Children and Young Adults). She publishes regularly in Czech and international journals and in collective monographs, especially in cooperation with the University of Lille and ISFEC Aquitaine in Bordeaux.

“Antiquity and French culture gave my life a sense of direction. Canada opened up new horizons for me. Literary theory is just one of the many roads to knowledge. To quote a classic “Grau ist alle Theorie, und grün des Lebens goldner Baum”.”