The Canadian-American Review of Hungarian Studies - Vol. 4 ... - EPA

More documents

Recommendations

Info

"Medal of Honour" for eminent work in Hungarian literature outsideof Hungary. In 1938 he was awarded an honorary doctorate by theUniversity of Debrecen during that institution's quatercentenary celebrations.45With the coming of the war and the installation in Hungary of aregime hostile to Kirkconnell's political ideals, paying further homageto his person was no longer possible there. Hungarians elsewhere continuedto show their appreciation. Soon after the 1956 Revolution,Winnipeg's Hungarian Literary Society made him an honorary member.Soon thereafter, Toronto's Helicon Society presented him with amedal at one of its gala affairs. After the ceremonies Professor Kirkconnelldemonstrated that his gifts were not confined to the realm ofscholarship and writing: he also had a talent for dancing the csdrdas. 46Still later came the Gold Medal of Freedom, awarded to Kirkconnell bythe Hungarian Freedom Fighter Association. And in 1967, at a banquetin New York City's Plaza Hotel, he was presented with the GeorgeWashington medallion of the American Hungarian Foundation. 47These honours have been undoubtedly only a partial expression ofthe North American Hungarian community's gratitude. Further statementsand deeds of appreciation came from private individuals, acquaintances,and scholars; mostly from men of a generation which, likeKirkconnell himself, had known another Hungary and had learned toappreciate poetry and literature. It remains to be seen whether a newgeneration of Hungarian-Canadians will cherish Kirkconnell's work asmuch as the old did. Hopefully, it will. After all, thanks to his work, thedescendants of immigrants will have a chance to read the poetry of theirancestral land long after they have forgotten the language of theirforefathers.AnAppreciationDuring his long career, Professor Kirkconnell displayed a boundlesscapacity for work, and a limitless interest in Canadian public affairs.His accomplishments in the field of Hungarian poetry and literatureand his involvement with Hungarians in Canada and elsewhere constitutedonly one aspect of a career filled with constant activity and a greatvariety of achievements. For Hungarian-Canadians the results of thissmall aspect of his work were very significant. In the realm of poetry,Kirkconnell functioned as an interpreter of the Hungarian nation's soul,not only to Canadians, but to the whole Anglo-Saxon world. His versetranslations and other scholarly writings brought the literary genius of
Magyar poets and writers to the reading public of Canada and otherEnglish-speaking countries. This has substantially helped to enhancethe Magyars' reputation in this country and elsewhere.The improvement of the reputation of Hungarians was particularlyimportant in Canada where, until recent times, the general publicregarded immigrants from central and eastern Europe with a great dealof reserve and even disdain. Given the natural proclivity of the nativebornin any country to receive newcomers with suspicion, the Canadianpublic's lack of confidence in and respect for immigrant groups isunderstandable. These attitudes were just another difficulty newcomershad to endure. For the sake of a healthier atmosphere in Canada'spolitical, civic and social life, these attitudes had to be eliminated sooneror later.The overcoming of nativistic antagonisms towards immigrants was adifficult process. Each newcomer individually and each ethnic groupcollectively had to prove to the native-born that, far from constitutingathreat, immigrants were an asset to Canada's economic, political andcultural life. In this struggle for acceptance some newcomers werehelped by the fact that they could learn English or French faster becausetheir own mother tongues were similar. Other groups may have had areputation established in agriculture, or craftsmanship, or business, orarts and culture, even before their members began migrating to Canadain large numbers. Hungarians were not so fortunate. Magyar is a Ural-Altaic language, hence Hungarian newcomers tended to learn Englishor French more slowly than immigrants speaking Germanic or Romancelanguages. Canadians knew nothing or next to nothing aboutHungary's culture, and could learn little about it from poorly educatedpeasants who rarely learned more than a few words of English. EducatedHungarians were, on the whole, not admitted to Canada untilafter 1945, and those who managed to land here despite regulations hadlittle time to preach the excellence of their people's cultural heritage.Until the post-World War II period, moreover, Canada's Hungarianslived in isolation, or at best, in scattered, small communities, whichwere unable to generate a cultural life which would gain the appreciationof the public at large. Unable to prove their value and their culturalequality to the native-born population, Canadians of Hungarian backgroundsurvived the first half of the twentieth century as victims ofnativistic prejudice, and subsisted as second-class citizens in a land offreedom and plenty. For most of them it was a difficult and degradingexperience. As a result of a combination of factors, gradually their lotimproved. No doubt, one of these factors was the work of WatsonKirkconnell.
Page 1 and 2: Canadian-American Review of Hungari
Page 9 and 10: the best possible settlers who woul
Page 11 and 12: than a decade later they were follo
Page 13 and 14: Sociologists have yet to explain sa
Page 15: fifteen minutes, and spent the rest
Page 18 and 19: from the "Canadian poetry" of Icela
Page 20 and 21: garian community of Western Canada,
Page 22 and 23: lowed translations from other, more
Page 24 and 25: which took place in the pages of th
Page 27: from teaching in 1968, Kirkconnell
Page 31 and 32: tive of his helpful attitude and un
Page 33: 33. Kirkconnell, A Slice of Canada,
Page 36 and 37: The groaning of the slaves on Egypt
Page 38 and 39: ecause most such lines are imbedded
Page 40 and 41: ;Two spheres contend with one anoth
Page 42 and 43: matched it to this feeble hurdy-gur
Page 44 and 45: NOTES1. The only full-length study
Page 46 and 47: terest in Hungarian literature, has
Page 48 and 49: limitations of Bowring and others:
Page 50 and 51: Jones' Five Hungarian WritersJ 4 Su
Page 53 and 54: REVIEW ARTICLEHungarian Poetry in E
Page 55 and 56: ooks written in English. A table of
Page 57 and 58: passive, or into noun phrases in En
Page 59 and 60: REVIEW ARTICLEHungarian Religious P
Page 61 and 62: magas és a mély magánhangzójú
Page 63 and 64: SPECIAL SECTIONToldiAn Epic Poem (1
Page 65 and 66: CANTO ONE"He lifted, with one hand,
Page 67 and 68: "Who should be squire of this whole
Page 69 and 70: What meant this hubbub in a widow's
Page 71 and 72: "Lad, here's your share! Don't say
Page 73 and 74: The heavy stone flies on: where wil
Page 75 and 76: The homes of moorhen, plover, gull
Page 77 and 78: Perhaps I'll shed my blood, some no
Page 79 and 80:
CANTO FIVENicholas went wandering a
Page 81 and 82:
Her tongue was like a coulter in th
Page 83 and 84:
Rosemary pots mourned on its window
Page 85 and 86:
Such were her words. No more would
Page 87 and 88:
As if a nest of hornets rose to sti
Page 89 and 90:
Upon an isle, by a Czech's hand the
Page 95 and 96:
REVIEW ARTICLEQuo Vadis Transylvani
Page 97 and 98:
Hungarians in Rumania in terms of t
Page 99 and 100:
down by serious shortcomings in bot
Page 101 and 102:
alanced presentation of the Vienna
Page 104 and 105:
talent enables Wass to depict the s
Page 106 and 107:
Carpathian Federation, and printed
Page 108 and 109:
Now and then, however, this rule de
Page 110 and 111:
temper such an indictment by recogn
Page 112 and 113:
OUR CONTRIBUTORS (continued from pa
Page 115:
TO THOSE WISHING TO SUBMIT MANUSCRI
show all

The Canadian-American Review of Hungarian Studies - Vol. 4 ... - EPA

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?