Csongor Es Tunde (Csongor and Tunde): The Quest: A Fairytale Play in Verse

ISBN-13: 9781537213033 / Angielski / Miękka / 2017 / 80 str.

Mihaly Vorosmarty; Peter Zollman

Opis

Foremost 19th century Hungarian drama, by Mihaly Vorosmarty. Long out of print, now made available again by Sarkett & Associates, Inc. Includes color illustrations. It presents side-by-side columns of the original Hungarian and Peter Zollman's English translation. Csongor es Tunde is considered by critics the foremost 19th century Hungarian drama but is virtually unknown in the West. Likened to Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, its theme is universal: man's quest for happiness and fulfillment. Many consider this symbolist drama to be remarkably ahead of its time. A cultural treasure to Hungarians, Vorosmarty's tale has inspired others. Noted composer Leo Weiner (1885-1960) wrote ballet music for Csongor es Tunde, considered by some his magnum opus. Excerpt on this work from the Oxford History of Hungarian Literature, Lorant Czigany: "In the second period of Vorosmarty's creative career, the place of the epic was taken over by the drama. He had experimented with plays ever since 1820 when he first became acquainted with Shakespeare, but his youthful efforts show only the author's lack of experience. In 1831, however, he succeeded in creating a masterpiece, Csongor es Tunde (Csongor and Tunde), which surpasses all the dramas that he wrote before or after it. In fact, his reputation as a playwright rests solely on this light-hearted piece. Csongor and Tunde is regarded by many of his critics as the climax of his poetic achievement. "Basing his plot on a sixteenth-century szephistoria, the Argirus romance, and probably influenced in his treatment of the subject by Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream, Vorosmarty sets out to explore the possible answers to the questions: Are human beings capable of achieving happiness? Is there a kind of happiness that completely satisfies man? The answer Vorosmarty gives to the ageless question wrapped in the glittering fairy-tale is straightforward: the sole source of human happiness can only be reciprocated love. "As a philosophy about the meaning of life, Vorosmarty's answer is sincere and devoid of pretensions and, even more remarkable, it ignores the Christian tradition of 'higher' aims or of spiritual compensation in the other world; thus it is a worldly and pagan, if not hedonistic, philosophy." Students of Hungarian history and culture will likely also be interested in our other classic republication: Stephen Szechenyi and the Awakening of Hungarian Nationalism, 1791-1841 Paperback - by Dr. George Barany (Author), published by Sarkett & Associates, Inc. (2011), also on Amazon.