Most faculty and administrators intervieweddeclined to speculate on what Havel would say inhis speech.

"I'm delighted [about the selection]," saidBoard of Overseers member David L. Johnston '63 ina telephone interview from McGill University onMonday night, before the announcement was made."But we'll just have to wait and see."

Thomas, who teaches a unit on Havel'sliterature in Slavic 130b, said Havel might speakon any number of themes. Among those he mentionedare the historical and philosophical connectionsbetween the Untied States and the Czech Republicand how the 17th century Czech playwrightComenius, who was once offered the presidency ofHarvard, influenced western education.

Havel's other dramatic works include TheGarden Party (1963), The Memorandum(1965), The Conspirators (1970) andThree Vanek Plays (1990). His other essaysinclude "Protocols" (1966) and "Letters to Olga"(1989).

The honorary degree Havel will receive fromHarvard on June 8 will be the latest in a longstring of commendations.

Among the most prominent of these are theErasmus Prize (1986), the Simon Bolivar Prize(1990) and the Indira Gandhi Prize (1993).

In recent years, Commencement speakers haveincluded Vice President Al G '69; former chair ofthe Joint Chiefs of Staff Colin L. Powell; GroHarlem Brundtland, prime minister of Norway;former Soviet Foreign Minister EduardShevardnadze; German Chancellor Helmut Kohl; andPakistani Prime Minister Benazier Bhutto