Hungarian Studies Newsletter, 1985 (13. évfolyam, 43-46. szám)

1985 / 43-44. szám

ARTICLES & PAPERS (Continued)

In 1970 Gyula László presented a summary of views and arguments in favor of the hypothesis of a two-fold conquest of the Carpathian Basin, by the ancestors of present-day Hungarians: with the first stage occurring in about 680 AD, the second in 895. László’s concept of a continuity in the material culture, from the latter part of the seventh century through the tenth century, makes theargumentforasecond conquest more than a theory. The possibility of continuity was also considered by A. Bartha in his Hungarian Society in the 9th and 10th Centuries. He says that “the implements, weapons, tastes and consequently the world concept of the Avars and the Hungarian conquerors had many points of contact. This occurrence calls attention to the possibly common origin of the cultures of these two nations. But we must consider the possibility that the remainders of the Avars have lived to see the arrival of the conquering Hungarians, and that the common feature of their civilization may be explained partly also by ethnical fusion.” Neither written sources nor medieval historiography support the concept of a conquest. The early modern historians created the concept and the corresponding term of conquest ("honfoglalás”). The new term and axiomatic concept took precedence over the logic of sou rces. The author is prof, of history at the U. of Washington. D

Bodolai, Zoltán and Endre Csapd, comps., THE UNMAKING OF PEACE: the Fragmentation and Subsequent Destruction of Central Europe after World War I by the Peace Treaty of Trianon. Second edition. Árpád kiadó, 1426 Grace Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44107,1984. 32 pages, diagrams, maps. $3.00 paper.

The booklet was first published by the Committee for Human Rights in Central Europe, Melbourne, Australia, 1980. It discusses the terms and impact of the punitive Trianon Peace Treaty of 1920, which had tragic effects on the fate of Hungarians and highly undesirable consequences as far as the peoples of Europe were concerned. In fact, many historians documented it as the principal cause leading to World War II. This essay represents the Hungarian point-of-view, shared by a growing number of non-Hungarian historians who believe that the way to secure a lasting peace in the region can be found only in a rearrangement of the Carpathian Basin, says John B. Nádas in the preface of the publication. D

Dénes, Iván Zoltán, “The Political Role of Hungary’s Nineteeth- Century Conservatives and How They Saw Themselves." The Historical Journal 26:4 (December 1983) 845-65. (Translated by Eva Pálmai.)

Around the middle of the 19th century, the Hungarian conservatives made a number of abortive attempts to influence the course of events in the Austrian empire and in the kingdom of Hungary. What did they want, and why did they fail to achieve it? Was there anything special about the way their political activity and their self-perception bore on one another as compared to other 19th century conservatives? The author is convinced that “the role the conservatives had played carried less weight for Hungarian political consciousness than the myth that had grown up around them, a myth that could flourish because their descendants set no store by Hungary’s seifdetermination, by her democratic development, nor by her openness to the rest of Europe. It was a myth which rested not so much on what they have done as on what they have seen themselves to be." They were Hungarian conservatives first who helped to captivate Hungarian society

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with a way of thinking that did not permit calling things by their name; and they successfully tried to adapt the pro- Habsburg heritage of the 17th and 18th centuries to the circumstances of a new age. The author is on the staff of the Institute of Philosophy, HAS. D

Földesi, Szabó Gyöngyi and Zbigniew Krawczyk. “The Social Role of Sports Events in Poland and Hungary.” International Review of Sport Sociology.” 17:1 (1982)23-47.

In both Hungary and Poland, attendance at sports events by adolescents and adults has decreased in recent years. The reasons for this are explored through survey data from 500 secondary and vocational school students and 500 parents of these students in Poland and from 500 secondary and vocational school students and 661 parents of these students in Hungary. Both the students and their parents in both counties recognize the social importance of sports events, but their expectations toward such events are of cultural rather than of sport-oriented nature. Attendance at sports events can be expected to increase only when competition take forms suited to these expectations. Attitudes toward sports events are influenced by such factors as sex, residence, and occupation, more than by nationality. □

Gillies, Malcolm. “Bartók in Britain: 1922.” Music and Letters

63:1-2(January-April 1982)213-25.

Bartók and his music were virtually unknown to British audiences before World War I. He visited and performed in Britain many times but of all his tours the one he undertook in 1922 had special significance. At the time he was recognized as a composer with a rapidly growing international reputation. The tour consisted of three public (London, Aberystwyth, and Liverpool) and three or more private engagements. The violinist Jelly d’Aranyi shared in some of his performances and Bartók was amazed by the warm reception and interest audiences displayed at his concerts. Encouraged by the success of his 1922 tour, Bartók returned to Britain in 1923 but with less success. No longer a novelty he was less noticed and critical reaction turned increasingly against his more recent works notably the Second Violin Sonata. He also experienced personal difficulties in the association with Jelly, which for so many years provided a degree of vitality and excitement lost forever in his marriage. Ü

Horvath, Janos “The Peace Seekers: The Hungarian Student Movement for National Independence in 1944.” (Recollections.) Hungarian Studies Review 10:3 (Fall 1983) 155-177.

Youth, mainly college students, have been expected to provide a critique of the social and political status quo and be the disseminator of new ideas, suitable to bring about change. Hungarian youth looked back at the historic times of 1848/49 when their role was hailed by the population at large. More recently, when the Germans occupied the country in March of 1944, most if not all youth groups went underground. “The inherent dynamics of an underground movement carried us toward activism," says the author. “When the freedom of speech and assembly are banned, the written word is the next available method of sharing one’s thoughts. But the writing down of things in defiance of prohibition tends to generate symbolic attributes. The idea receives more careful clarification and expressions become more polished, as if subconsciously suspecting that a particular piece of writing might turn out to be the last composition in the author’s life." Similar feelings seem to dominate many

NO. 43-44, SPRING-SUMMER 1985 HUNGARIAN STUDIES NEWSLETTER