Hungarian Studies Newsletter, 1974 (2. évfolyam, 3-5. szám)
1974 / 4. szám
ARTICLES AND OTHER PUBLICATIONS Gilberg, Trond. “Ethnic Minorities in Romania under Socialism.” East European Quarterly, Vol. VII, No. 4. (January 1974), pp. 435-458. Socio-economic mobilization has not resulted in massive cultural assimilation of minorities to the dominant Romanian culture. There appears to be some assimilation of elites, but the masses of Hungarians and Germans have remained true to their ethnic heritage. The majority of Gypsies is remaining traditional in socio-economic lifestyle and cultural values.The Jews are diminishing rapidly in numbers, and linguistic assimilation and other manifestation of group particularities proceed apace. Magocsi, Paul R. “The Role of Education in the Formation of National Consciousness.” East European Quarterly, Vol. VII, No. 2 (Summer 1973), pp. 157-165. The author states that national consciousness and national identity was in large part dependent upon external forces among which education and the role of the teacher were crucial. As an illustration he discusses the factors acting upon the Rusyn population which before World War I inhabited the northeastern counties of the Hungarian Kingdom, an area that belongs to the USSR since 1945. The Rusyns were exposed to three outside forces, the Czechoslovakian, the Ukranian, and the Magyar, of which the Ukranian current became dominant by the late 1930’s. He agrees with Carlton Hayes, according to whom loyalty to one of the choices was the result of “purposeful conscious education and training.” Such training depended on the attitude of the individual teacher. As a result, the Ukrainian national orientation became dominant among the articulate elements of the region. Palotai, Michael. "Zoltán Koda'ly, a religious composer.” Master’s thesis in Music Education, U. of Southern California, June 1974. The body of the thesis comprises an examination of BOOKS (Continued from page 2) Jewish nationalism in Greater Hungary, thirdly the dynamic of Hungary's economic modernization, and finally a great political crisis after 1903 reinforced this collaboration; and then it shows that these same factors were decisive in the formation of Hungary’s scientific geniuses. The author speaks several East European languages, among them Hungarian, and has taught history at Michigan State University. Robinson, William F. THE PATTERN OF REFORM IN HUNGARY; A Political, Economic and Cultural Analysis. New York: Praeger, 1973. 467 pages, cloth. $21.50. This book is a scholarly study of the pattern of reform in Hungary. The emphasis is on the process of transition to new forms and methods, the background and roots of such developments; the factors, both domestic and foreign, that have conditioned, stimulated, or retarded the process; and the significance and meaning of what appears to be a gradual, qualitative change in the nature of Hungarian society and its communist system. Part I covers the period from 1953 to 1967, and examines the forerunners of and preparations for the present reform, as well as the political struggle over its acceptance. Part II concentrates on the operation and development of the reform up to the end of Kodaíy’s sacred and religiously oriented choral music, preceded by a succint account of the composer’s life. For more information or copy of the thesis write to the author c/o Prof. H. Stevens, Southern California Chapter of the American Musicological Society, 9631 Second Avenue, Inglewood, CA 90305. Prpic, George J., “Croatia and Hungary During the Turkish Era” special No. of Awakener, a quarterly published by the Center for Southern-Hungarian and Balkan Studies (Cleveland, OH) July 1973. 32 pages. Prpic, an Assit. Prof, of History at J. Carroll U., (Cleveland,OH) and author of The Croatian Immigrants in America (Philosophical Library, 1971) discussestheeraoftheZrinyis, common national heroes of the Hungarians and Croatians, in the framework of common historical interests of these two nations. Rezler, Dr. Julius, Prof, of Sociology at Loyola University, Chicago, has an article “An Evaluation of the Hungarian Economic Reform of 1968” in the Jahrbuch der Wirtschaft Osteuropas (Yearbook of East-European Economics) Vol. 4 (1973), pages 369-395. The paper examines the conceptual and structural foundations of the economic reform in Hungary and evaluates their performance; it describes the inefficiences of centralized planning mechanism which necessitated its radical revision; it recognizes the contributions of certain theoretical concepts and applied policies, that were borrowed from abroad, for the reform; it presents analysis of the reform’s theoretical and ideological framework; and it gives a detailed examination of the reform’s practice in terms of its economic policies. Finally, the paper attempts to evaluate the performance of the reformed economy on the basis of preliminary results of 1968-1971. Another article in the same volume by Sándor Ganczer deals with “The main features of applying mathematical methods in planning in Hungary,” pp. 43-68. (Continued on page 4) 1971. The final chapter sythesizes the two parts and assesses the situation as it existed in the spring of 1972. The author gives extensive treatment of the New Economic Mechanism, but in well documented relationship to political and cultural forces. “Culture” is used as intellectual and artistic activity rather than in its anthropological meaning. Nevertheless, Robinson provides sociological and anthropological data of interest, and describes, for example, the changing governmental attitudes toward Hungarians living abroad, both in the neighboring states and overseas. He concludes that Hungary “is the first state in the Soviet alliance that has undertaken genuine economic and substantial political reform on a society-wide basis. It is the first such state to attempt a qualitative and basic change in the nature of the control system while trying to maintain the leading roleofthe Party ... Hungary, therefore, is in the midst of a great process of transition ... a unique experiment in the Communist world.” Of course the author is unable to answer the question: where will it lead? The book is appended by a bibliographic essay, tables on the distribution patterns of national wealth, a list of Hungarian leadership, and one on Hungarian periodicals. The author is a senior analyst for Radio Free Europe, a political scientists, who received his training at Cornell University, Middlebury College, and Indiana University. NO- 4, 1974, HUNGARIAN STUDIES NEWSLETTER 3
