The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide

By Bright Summaries

Unlock the more straightforward side of The Unbearable Lightness of Being with this concise and insightful summary and analysis!

This engaging summary presents an analysis of The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera, an intricate, cyclical novel which charts the lives of Tomas, a successful surgeon, his wife Tereza, his lover Sabina, and Sabina’s lover Franz. The narrative skilfully blends the characters’ experiences of love, political activism and happiness with philosophical musings on the “lightness” of existence, creating an engaging novel which encourages readers to reflect on the meaning of their own lives. Milan Kundera was born in Czechoslovakia, where he had a successful career as a university lecturer and author until the country was invaded by Soviet forces in 1968 following the Prague Spring. His books were banned by the Communist regime, and he moved to France in 1975. He has won a number of prestigious literary awards, including the Jerusalem Prize (1985) and the Czech State Literature Prize (2007).

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This in-depth and informative reading guide brings you:

•A complete plot summary
•Character studies
•Key themes and symbols
•Questions for further reflection

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• Language: English
• Publisher: BrightSummaries.com
• Release date: May 31, 2018
• ISBN: 9782808002080

Book preview

CZECH-BORN FRENCH WRITER

Born in Brno (present-day Czech Republic) in 1929.

Literary awards:

Prix Médicis étranger, 1973 (for Life is Elsewhere)

Jerusalem Prize, 1985

The Austrian State Prize for European Literature, 1987

Herder Prize, 2000

Prix mondial Cino Del Duca, 2009

Notable works:

Laughable Loves (1969), short story collection

Ignorance (2000), novel

The Festival of Insignificance (2013), novel

Milan Kundera was born in Czechoslovakia in 1929. His father was a prominent musician at that time, and passed his love of music on to the future writer, whom he also taught to play the piano. Kundera studied Musicology and Musical Composition before starting a degree in Literature and Aesthetics at Charles University in Prague. After two semesters, he transferred to the Film Faculty of the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague, where he later worked as a professor for several years.

When Czechoslovakia was invaded by the Soviet Union in 1968, he lost his job and his novels were banned. In 1975 he immigrated to France, where he worked as a lecturer at the University of Rennes and at the École des hautes études in Paris.

Milan Kundera remains one of the most significant writers alive today, and is considered by critics and readers