Hungarian poet and dramatist
Mihaly Vorosmarty
(archaically English:
Michael Vorosmarthy
[1]
1 December 1800 – 19 November 1855) was an important
Hungarian
poet and
dramatist
.
Biography
[
edit
]
He was born at
Puszta-Nyek
(now
Kapolnasnyek
), of a
noble
Roman Catholic family. His father was a steward of the
Nadasdys
. Mihaly was educated at
Szekesfehervar
by the
Cistercians
and at
Pest
by the
Piarists
. The death of the elder Vorosmarty in 1817 left his widow and numerous family in poverty. As a tutor to the Perczel family, however, Vorosmarty contrived to pay his own way and go through his academic course at Pest.
[2]
The activities of the
Diet of 1825
enkindled his patriotism and gave a new direction to his poetry. He had already begun a drama,
Salomon
. He flung himself into public life and fell in love with Etelka Perczel, who was from a higher social class. Many of his lyrics concern this unrequited love. Meanwhile, his patriotism found expression in the heroic epic
Zalan futasa
(
The Flight of Zalan
, 1824), which, while dealing with the Hungarian past, also dealt with contemporary political concerns.
[3]
This new epic marked a transition from the classical to the romantic school. Vorosmarty was hailed by
Karoly Kisfaludy
and the Hungarian romanticists as one of their own. He had forsaken the law for literature, and his financial situation deteriorated. Between 1823-31, he composed four dramas and eight smaller epics, partly historical, partly fanciful. Of these epics he always regarded
Cserhalom
(1825) as the best, but later criticism preferred
A ket szomszedvar
(
Two Neighbouring Castles
, 1831).
[2]
When the
Hungarian Academy
was established on 17 November 1830 he was elected a member of the philological section, and ultimately succeeded Karoly Kisfaludy as director with an annual pension of 500 florins. He was one of the founders of the
Kisfaludy Society
, and in 1837 started two periodicals: the
Athenaeum
and the
Figyelmez?
. The first was the chief bellettristic periodical, and the second was a critical periodical.
[2]
From 1830-43, he devoted himself mainly to drama, including
Csongor es Tunde
(
Csongor and Tunde
, 1830), a five-act play inspired by Albert Gergei's
Prince Argirus
and by Shakespeare's
A Midsummer Night's Dream
; and
Vernasz
(
Blood Wedding
, 1833), which won the Academy's 200-gulden prize.
[2]
Csongor es Tunde
was described by
Gyorgy Lukacs
in 1911 as the best Hungarian play of the nineteenth century.
[
citation needed
]
He also published several volumes of poetry. His song "
Szozat
" ("Appeal", 1836) was to become a second national anthem, and he wrote "Az elhagyott anya" ("The Abandoned Mother", 1837) and "Az uri holgyhoz" ("To the Noble Lady", 1841). His marriage in 1843 to
Laura Csajaghy
[
Wikidata
]
inspired him to compose a new cycle of love poems. They had five children, including
Bela
and
Ilona
. In 1848, in conjunction with
Arany
and
Pet?fi
, he contributed to a translation of
William Shakespeare
's works.
[2]
With the support of
Lajos Kossuth
and
Imre Cseszneky
, he was elected to represent
Jankovac
at the diet of 1848, and in 1849 was made one of the judges of the high court. The national catastrophe (the fall of
the revolution of 1848-49
) profoundly affected him. For a short time he was an exile, and when he returned to Hungary in 1850 he was already in serious decline. In 1854, he wrote his last poem, "A ven cigany" ("The Old Gypsy"). He moved back to
Pest
to be close to doctors, and died there, in the same house where Karoly Kisfaludy had died 25 years earlier. He was buried in Kerepesi Cemetery. His funeral, on 21 November, was a day of national mourning. His penniless children were provided for by a national subscription collected by
Ferenc Deak
, who acted as their guardian.
[2]
Honors
[
edit
]
- A monument by
Ede Kallos
and
Eduard Telcs
, constructed in the 1900s, stands in
Budapest
in the
square
which bears his name.
[4]
- Mihaly Vorosmarty stamp was issued by Hungary on 5 May 1937 showing his portrait.
[5]
- Another stamp was issued by Hungary on 28 July 1955 in the Poets series.
[5]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Author, and sold: Poetry of the Magyars: Preceded by a Sketch of the Language and Literature of Hungary and Transylvania -PAGE: 173
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
public domain
:
Bain, Robert Nisbet
(1911). "
Vorosmarty, Mihaly
". In
Chisholm, Hugh
(ed.).
Encyclopædia Britannica
. Vol. 28 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 213.
- ^
Bak, Janos M. (2015). "From the Anonymous Gesta to the Flight of Zalan by Vorosmarty". In Bak, Janos M.; Geary, Patrick J.; Klaniczay, Gabor (eds.).
Manufacturing a Past for the Present: Forgery and Authenticity in Medievalist Texts and Objects in Nineteenth Century Europe
. Brill. p. 103.
- ^
"Kepz?m?veszet Magyarorszagon - Fine Arts in Hungary"
.
Fine Arts in Hungary
. Retrieved
9 August
2020
.
- ^
a
b
Stanley Gibbons Limited (2009).
Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue, Part 2: Austria and Hungary, 7th edition
. London and Ringwood: Stanley Gibbons Limited.
ISBN
978-0-85259-741-5
.
External links
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The list is by chronological order.
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International
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