Three decades of Jaroslav Vrchlicky’s struggle with Leaves of Grass. Jiří Karásek’s decadent reading. Otokar Březina’s interpretation of Whitman’s symbolism and the problem of free verse in Czech literature. Walt Whitman’s impact on Stanislav Kostka Neumann and his proletarian followers. Free verse of Otakar Theer. Karel Čapek’s critique of Walt Whitman’s role in modern poetry.