GEORGE
BISZTRAY
HIDDEN MEANINGS
IN H U N G A R I A N LITERARY TITLES
A literary title can be as i n t r i g u i n g as a p r o p e r n a m e - as a
m a t t e r of fact, grammatically speaking, it is a p r o p e r n a m e . A n
i n t r i g u i n g title is not e n o u g h to m a k e a great w o r k of a m e d i o c r e
one, but it certainly enhances the literary experience. Pun, p a r a d o x ,
irony, allusion a n d symbolism are s o m e of the stylistic d e v i c e s
f o u n d in literary titles. Interestingly e n o u g h , H u n g a r i a n literary
criticism has rarely considered this aspect of literature.
The genre in which titles are the least i m p o r t a n t is poetry. A
p o e m speaks for itself, it d o e s not need a sophisticated title. In
fact, it m a y n e e d no title at all - hence indices of p o e m s the first
lines of w h i c h serve as titles. Occasionally, certain m a n n e r i s m s
of poets catch the attention of the reading public. Notable is E n d r e
A d y ' s consistency in using t h r e e - w o r d titles. Even t h o u g h this
p h e n o m e n o n is striking, n o o n e h a s tried to interpret it. P e r h a p s
there is no valid interpretation a n d the three-word titles are just
a sign of A d y ' s poetic m a n n e r i s m .
The more challenging are the titles of n u m e r o u s H u n g a r i a n
n o v e l s a n d plays. Few of these, if any, w e r e written before the
1850s. While it is always risky to d e e m a literary occurrence as
the first one of its kind, it seems that the belated but great Romantic
novelist Mór Jókai was the first one to stimulate his r e a d e r s '
intellectual curiosity with intricate titles. Some of these are oxymorons
(Szegény gazdagok, 'The poor rich' (1860), or Gazdag szegények, 'The
rich p o o r ' (1890), the latter also being a p l a y f u l antithesis of the
former). Other titles are paradoxical, such as Öreg ember nem vén
222
G e o r g e Bisztray
ember 'An old m a n is not o l d ' (1900). 1 Mire megvénülünk 'By the
time we get o l d ' (1865) is a n ironically m i s l e a d i n g title for a
n o v e l in w h i c h o n e searches in vain for a representation of old
age. Perhaps Jokai's polysemic titles are the m o s t fascinating ones.
A m o n g these, A kőszívű ember fiai 'Sons of the stone-hearted m a n '
(1869) m a k e s r e f e r e n c e to a H u n g a r i a n s a y i n g which sees rigid,
cold-hearted p e o p l e as stonehearted ones. Such a person is Kázmér
Baradlay, the f a t h e r of the three y o u n g H u n g a r i a n s w h o are the
" s o n s " of t h e title. The f a t h e r dies in t h e first c h a p t e r of
arteriosclerosis, a condition t h a t makes the heart arteries brittle,
that is (figuratively speaking) stony. The most sophisticated polysemy,
w h i c h is c o m b i n e d with s y m b o l i s m , can b e f o u n d in the title
Fekete gyémántok
'Black d i a m o n d s ' (1870): a reference b o t h to
coal, the t r e a s u r e of H u n g a r i a n mines that international investors
greedily covet, a n d to the eyes of Eva (Evila), the hero's (Iván
Berend's) secret love. The title of Asszonyt kísér - Istent kísért
' E s c o r t i n g a w o m a n , t e m p t i n g G o d ' (1889) is b a s e d o n a n
untranslatable p a r o n y m y w h i c h functions as a p u n , with the verbs
kísér m e a n i n g ' a c c o m p a n y i n g ' (or, more precisely, 'accompanies')
or 'escorting' ('escorts'), and kísért 'tempting' ('tempts') in Hungarian.
While w e f i n d fewer interesting titles in H u n g a r i a n d r a m a
t h a n in the n o v e l , M a d á c h ' s Az ember tragédiája 'The t r a g e d y of
m a n ' (1862) is a philosophical enigma, a n d critics recognized it
as such since its first printing. A whole series of interpretations
unfolds f r o m this title and its possible variations. The most familiar
a m o n g these is János Erdélyi's view that a m o r e a p p r o p r i a t e title
w o u l d h a v e b e e n 'The c o m e d y of the devil'. 2 József Gulyás f o u n d
that the ' T r a g e d y of Lucifer' (the devil) w o u l d have been a n even
better title. 3 A r g u i n g about the title, Aladár Bodor thought that
1
A m o r e exact t r a n s l a t i o n of the H u n g a r i a n o r i g i n a l is i m p o s s i b l e . As is w e l l
k n o w n , t h e r e a r e n o p e r f e c t l y i n t e r c h a n g e a b l e s y n o n y m s : a d o g is n o t the s a m e
as a h o u n d , a p u p p y is n o t the s a m e as a w h e l p . T h e c o n n o t a t i o n of öreg in
H u n g a r i a n is o n e w h o e n t e r e d old a g e , w h e r e a s a vén p e r s o n is o n e w h o is n o
l o n g e r in p o s s e s s i o n of h i s basic m e n t a l a n d p h y s i c a l faculties.
J Á N O S E R D É L Y I : " M a d á c h Imre". In Pályák és pálmák
l i s h e d in the p e r i o d i c a l Magyarország,
1862.
2
3
JÓZSEF GULYÁS:
" L u c i f e r t r a g é d i á j a " . In Sárospataki
1886: 465.
Református
Originally pub-
Lapok
9, 1914:
76.
Hidden
meanings
in Hungarian
literary
titles
223
the p l a y s h o w e d not m a n k i n d ' s b u t the i n d i v i d u a l ' s tragedy. 4
True e n o u g h , the title is s o m e w h a t vague, b u t p h i l o s o p h y has
not b e e n k n o w n for the clarity of its terms a n d axioms, and "a
tragédia" or 'the tragedy' (as Hungarians call it) is very philosophical
in its inspiration. M o d e r n - d a y critics may even speculate w h e t h e r
' m a n ' refers only to A d a m (as Géza Laczkó s u g g e s t e d 5 ) , or also
includes Eve. The nebulosity of the title may have been intentional,
h o w e v e r , a n d definitely enriches the d r a m a ' s interpretability.
Using titles to convey h i d d e n messages took the most fascinating
f o r m s at the t u r n of the t w e n t i e t h century. While Jókai's novel
titles are witty, even brilliant, they d o not contribute significantly
to an u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the complexity of plot, message, psychology
or artistic quality. Their only f u n c t i o n is to catch the r e a d e r ' s
attention. Not so the literary titles of the next generation of writers,
spearheaded by Kálmán Mikszáth, the great reviver of late nineteenthc e n t u r y H u n g a r i a n prose.
Most critics regard Beszterce ostroma 'The siege of Beszterce'
(1895) as M i k s z á t h ' s best novel. If so, the irony of the title greatly
contributes to the overall effect of the novel. That is, the siege of
Beszterce never took place - it r e m a i n e d a plan w h i c h w a s foiled
by an astutely devised p r e v e n t i v e measure, d e m o n s t r a t i n g the
essential 'irony of fate', better k n o w n in modern literary terminology
as 'classical irony': the conflict b e t w e e n intention a n d outcome.
Besides other versions of irony, this one w a s a r e w a r d i n g device
used in titles. In 1930 Gyula Krúdy, M i k s z á t h ' s junior by thirtythree years, utilized a title and a n a r r a t i v e situation very similar
to that of 'The siege of Beszterce' in his short novel Etel király
kirícse 'King Attila's treasure'. S o m e w h a t like the o u t r a g e d count
Pongrácz, w h o set off to take the t o w n of Beszterce, a g r o u p of
m i d d l e - a g e d c o u n t r y g e n t l e m e n take the road to f i n d Attila's
l e g e n d a r y treasure. Their m o t i v a t i o n is a mixture of belief and
make-belief. One thing is certain: they are broke. They arrive in
B u d a p e s t w h e r e they sojourn for s o m e length of time, t h a n k s to
the p a t r o n a g e of a rich a n d eccentric aristocrat. By the e n d of the
4
ALADÁR BODOR:
5
GÉZA
A Z
LACZKÓ: " A
ember tragédiája mint az egyén tragédiája. B u d a p e s t ,
XIX.
s z á z a d i férfi t r a g é d i á j a " , In
Nyugat
3,
1905.
1923:
p.
135-39.
54.
224
George B i s z t r a y
novel they still h a v e n o t got a r o u n d to looking for the treasure,
b u t at least they are h a v i n g a g o o d time in the capital and its
environs.
I m p r e s s i o n i s m , a r t n o u v e a u a n d s y m b o l i s m w e r e the first
m o v e m e n t s that consciously explored the potential of literary titles.
In Margit K a f f k a ' s Színek és évek ' C o l o u r s a n d y e a r s ' (1912), the
passing of time can b e followed t h r o u g h most chapters. It w o u l d
be a v a i n effort, h o w e v e r , to look for d o m i n a t i n g or regularly
recurring colours in t h e main c h a r a c t e r ' s life. It is questionable
w h e t h e r i m p r e s s i o n i s t paintings can be i n t e r p r e t e d analytically,
because it is the total effect that counts. The same is true of Kaffka's
novel. Light and c o l o u r give p u r p o s e to the h e r o i n e ' s life - w h e n
they d i s a p p e a r , she falls into an e m o t i o n a l abyss.
The allegorical title of Kaffka's short novel Hangyaboly 'The ant
heap' [sic] (1917) refers to the small community of teachers (nuns)
and pupils in a small t o w n convent. Events which this community
regards as decisive - such as the election of a n e w mother superior
or two scandals rocking the foundations of the institution's quiet
conservatism - are actually as u n i m p o r t a n t for the wider society as
the excited bustling of tiny insects in an ant hill.
More eclectic t h a n Kaffka w a s her c o n t e m p o r a r y Gyula Krúdy,
whose p r e f e r e n c e f o r symbolic titles is e v i d e n t in t w o of his most
famous w o r k s : the Sinbad cycle (a series of short stories published
under the title Szindbád) and A vörös postakocsi 'The red stagecoach'
(1914). T h e hero of the former is a n aging turn-of-the-century
idler with a vaguely middle-class background and strong inclination
towards daydreaming a n d life's humble pleasures. Nobody questions
his identity or inquires about his more plausible name. The character
is i n d e e d timeless, sailing the sea of memories. These obvious
o b s e r v a t i o n s a p p e a r in most H u n g a r i a n i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s of this
unusual prose work.
The case is d i f f e r e n t with A vörös postakocsi, w h i c h is a more
complex a n d a m b i g u o u s title t h a n Szindbád. The colour red and
its s h a d e s , t u r n i n g i n t o pink at o n e e n d of the scale and r e d d i s h
brown at the other, d o m i n a t e the novel. Colours that can be placed
on this scale occur f i f t e e n times in c h a p t e r 1, ten times in chapter
2, and t w e n t y - o n e times in c h a p t e r 3. A l t h o u g h other colours,
Hidden
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titles
225
too, a p p e a r in the novel and their n u m b e r actually s u r p a s s e s the
variations of red, n o n e of these colours a p p e a r s m o r e f r e q u e n t l y
t h a n the pink to r e d d i s h - b r o w n scale. The c o n n o t a t i o n s of this
g r o u p are as a m b i v a l e n t as the traditional ones of the colour red:
f r o m life and p a s s i o n to death, f r o m the erotic to the grotesque.
At least three w o m e n w h o p l a y central roles as erotic symbols
h a v e hair with a touch of red: Klára (reddish b r o w n ) , C l a r e n c e /
Lotti (reddish gold) and Estella (red).
Another symbolic reference in the title to a stagecoach enhances
the importance of the colour red. This coach is only one of the
m e a n s of travel mentioned - w e also find references to trains,
ships and the exotic Russian troika. Passages of life, changes of
fortune, escapism, and the expectation of new experiences are central
themes of the novel, closely connected to the motif of traveling.
Only one critic, Imre Bori, m e n t i o n e d briefly the significance of
the stagecoach in his m o n o g r a p h on Krúdy. 6 The symbolic meaning
is m u c h richer, however. Since stagecoaches w e r e no longer used
by the fictional time of the novel (about 1910), this anachronistic
vehicle of the rich adventurer Alvinczy symbolizes, primarily, its
o w n e r ' s eccentricity. The six harnessed horses gallop like some
classical symbols of Fate, possibly also recalling the image of the
horses of the Apocalypse. The large wheels keep t u r n i n g fast, like
the wheels of Fortune. Inside the coach there is the smell of tobacco
a n d toilet powder, creating a s e n s u o u s atmosphere. A great deal of
the novel's rich message is h i d d e n in the title.
A very d i f f e r e n t kind of novel is Z s i g m o n d Móricz's Az Isten
háta mögött 'Behind G o d ' s b a c k ' (1911). Móricz w a s m u c h m o r e
critical of nostalgia, d r e a m s a n d illusions t h a n Kaffka, K r ú d y
a n d other contemporaries. His short novel has its o w n history,
i n a s m u c h as it illustrates h o w critical consensus can stop literary
i n q u i r y for a c e n t u r y or even longer. All critics of this novel
s t a r t e d off w i t h the banal H u n g a r i a n saying that constitutes the
title, a n d f o u n d corroboration of the a s s u m e d message in the
inner m o n o l o g u e s of a lonely character w h o m Móricz f e a t u r e d
w i t h obvious irony.
6
IMRE BORI:
Krúdy Gyula. N o v i Sad: F ó r u m , 1978.
226
G e o r g e Bisztray
In H u n g a r i a n the p h r a s e "behind G o d ' s b a c k " refers to the
b a c k w o o d s . By association it also p o i n t s to a b a c k w a r d place.
The n o v e l ' s character is a y o u n g d e p u t y j u d g e w h o has just taken
u p his d u t i e s in the small town situated b e t w e e n the Great Plain
a n d the n o r t h e r n m o u n t a i n s . Being homesick and ill-adjusted, he
watches t h e u n f a m i l i a r conditions w i t h quiet scorn. Probably just
out of law school, he is full of fashionable snobbish cosmopolitanism
and h a t r e d for ' b a c k w a r d ' Hungary, save the capital. His opinion
is so e x t r e m e , h o w e v e r , that it is really a p a r o d y of a certain
outlook o n the country. Generations of H u n g a r i a n critics missed
this - or w e r e reluctant to spell it out.
The r u r a l town that serves as setting is called 'Ilosva' in the
novel. We learn that it has electricity, p a v e d streets, a district
courthouse, a c o n s u m e r s ' co-op, both elementary a n d high school.
Literary history recorded that the model for Ilosva w a s the northern
H u n g a r i a n t o w n Jolsva (now in Slovakia), which the a u t h o r came
to know t h r o u g h his marriage to a local teacher. The most authentic
H u n g a r i a n encyclopedia to date, Révai Nagy Lexikona, describes
Jolsva b e f o r e World War I, when it still belonged to Hungary, as
a place w i t h 2,846 inhabitants, 482 residences, a railroad station,
postal, t e l e p h o n e a n d telegraph offices, and its o w n savings union.
It was the h u b of several industries, such as magnesite processing,
nail making, and blanket weaving; its grain market was also important.
Travel books mention Jolsva's picturesque character. Móricz's image
of the t o w n and its encyclopedic description coincide: b o t h show
Ilosva / Jolsva as a n y t h i n g but a God-forsaken place - in fact, it
appears to be very similar to t h o u s a n d s of small E u r o p e a n towns.
Social criticism a n d national masochism lend no key to Móricz's
title. M a y b e w e s h o u l d look to the i n d i v i d u a l characters. One
label that sticks is ' n o v e l of d e v e l o p m e n t ' , i m p l y i n g that Az Isten
háta mögött is the story of a y o u n g a n d inexperienced boy w h o
reaches m a t u r i t y in t w o respects, m o r e or less simultaneously:
by graduating from high school (after taking an exam called 'maturity
exam' in H u n g a r i a n ) , a n d by sleeping w i t h a w o m a n for the first
time. In the course of the novel, w i t h i n the f r a m e of some forty
hours, Laci Veres h a s to agonize over the f r u s t r a t i o n s of coming
of age. H e realizes that there is n o o n e to go to for guidance.
Hidden
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in Hungarian literary
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227
While God is not specifically m e n t i o n e d , it is obvious that He,
too, is silent and has turned away from His creation. The existentialist
u n d e r t o n e of the message is clear. Instead of offering a d a t e d
picture of a particular rural t o w n to please cosmopolitans and
their soul b r o t h e r s , the c o m m u n i s t s , Móricz created a m a r v e l o u s
lasting i m a g e of the ' h u m a n condition'. At the same time, he
assigned an entirely new meaning to a rhetorical cliché by exploiting
its implied ambiguity, and by m a k i n g the r e a d e r c o n t e m p l a t e the
u n f a m i l i a r d i m e n s i o n s of this meaning.
The titles that Móricz u s u a l l y gave his novels are predictable.
They are telling, often witty, but yield no substance for interpretation.
O n e a d d i t i o n a l exception is Tündérkert 'The fairy g a r d e n ' (1922),
the first volume of the amazing Erdély trilógia 'Transylvania trilogy',
w h i c h differs greatly from the general m o o d of Móricz's writings.
Like Mikszáth and Krúdy, Móricz utilizes irony in this title, referring
to the d r e a m of two rival rulers of 17th-century Transylvania to
t u r n the p r i n c i p a l i t y into a c o u n t r y of peace, p r o s p e r i t y a n d
i n d e p e n d e n c e - a d r e a m that neither of t h e m m a n a g e d to fully
realize. This is one ironic title that at least c a u g h t the interest of
Móricz's critics.
A m o n g the great writers of the 20th century, Dezső Kosztolányi
is the next o n e w h o gave cryptic titles to s o m e of his w o r k s .
N o t a b l e a m o n g these is Édes Anna (1926), p u b l i s h e d in English
translation b o t h as 'Anna Édes' a n d 'The w o n d e r - m a i d ' . There is
seemingly n o t h i n g special a b o u t the title: it is the n a m e of the
m a i n character, a young, inexperienced c o u n t r y girl w h o serves
a childless, loveless middle-class couple in the capital. Since édes
m e a n s ' s w e e t ' one m a y p o n d e r w h e t h e r A n n a is a 'sweet girl':
her a p p e a r a n c e a n d m a n n e r s are rather p l a i n to suit this s h a l l o w
qualifier u s e d as often in H u n g a r i a n as in English. One c a n n o t
forget either that eventually she m u r d e r s her m a s t e r and mistress
in the most grisly manner.
More important than Anna's physical characteristics is the intricate
web of s y m b o l s that the a u t h o r spins a r o u n d the girl. As the
stagecoach a n d the colour red d i d in Krúdy, sweetness acquires
several variations with several meanings, d e p e n d i n g on the context.
Its a n t o n y m - bitterness - gains equal significance.
228
G e o r g e Bisztray
Sweetness as s u c h has a primary, positive meaning that coincides
w i t h the traditional one. In the novel, this adjective is used only
once to denote a pleasant experience with which the reader can
empathize. Even in this one instance it a p p e a r s figuratively, from
the receiver's perspective. The first and only time that Anna experiences
love in an e n c o u n t e r with her mistress' nephew, it turns out that
she can give sweetness to others. At her side, her lover Jancsi sinks
into pleasure as if it were a t u b f u l of 'sugary milk'. On the other
h a n d , whenever sweetness is u s e d with an unpleasant connotation,
the adjective is usually spelled out, especially with reference to Mr.
Vizy, the master of the house. His craving for revenge and his excitement
about his prestigious ministerial position are qualified as being 'sweet'.
A figurative occurrence with unpleasant connotation appears in the
description of a d i n n e r party w h e n Mrs. Vizy, obviously wanting to
humiliate Anna, offers her a slice of cake, w h i c h she refuses, in a
symbolic denial of her essence expressed by her name.
The true denial of her essence, however, resides in the bitterness
of quinine, w h i c h her seducer gives her u p o n hearing that she is
p r e g n a n t . O n e of the d r u g s u s e d to i n d u c e abortion, q u i n i n e has
side effects that i n c l u d e b l i n d n e s s and d e a f n e s s - i n d e e d , Anna
goes temporarily blind and hallucinates. "Jesus, h o w bitter it was,
Virgin Mary, H o l y Virgin Mary, how bitter it was. She h a d never
d r u n k a n y t h i n g this bitter in her life." Bitterness also seals her
fate: she loses t h e fetus that m a y have g r o w n into her child, the
only p e r s o n w h o could h a v e given her love.
Perhaps the last great f i g u r e of the p r e - c o m m u n i s t novelists
w a s László N é m e t h . One is struck by the g l o o m y titles of at least
f o u r of his n o v e l s : Gyász ' M o u r n i n g ' (1936), Bűn ' C r i m e ' (1937),
Iszony ' R e p u l s i o n ' (1947) a n d Irgalom ' M e r c y ' (1965). N é m e t h ' s
critics also r e c o g n i z e d this inclination, a n d d e v o t e d m o d e r a t e
attention to t h e s e titles. A m o n g all his novels, Iszony is r e g a r d e d
as the most f a s c i n a t i n g and complex one.
Repulsion - b y what? Miklós Béládi m e n t i o n s h u m a n existence
as the m a i n c a u s e of the h e r o i n e Nelli K á r á s z ' s r e p u g n a n c e , but
he adds society as another source. 7 István Varga's target is narrower:
M I K L Ó S B É L Á D I : " N é m e t h László". In
B u d a p e s t : A k a d é m i a i Kiadó.
7
A magyar irodalom története
VI, 1966: 520.
Hidden
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229
Nelli's marriage and village life. 8 Interestingly, no one takes the
reader's (the reader being the implied 'society') perspective on
the enigmatic word. While it may be ultimately impossible to
solve the secret of Nelli's strangeness, and while a certain degree
of empathy is expected from readers, they will still feel the same
repugnance toward the heroine as when listening to a pagan myth.
Artemis scares us, no matter how much we respect her virginity
and her search for solitude. It was she w h o turned her hunting
dogs on Actaeon, the hapless Peeping Tom. Pneumonia and Nelli
jointly finish off Sanyi Takaró, Nelli's husband, and there is something
repulsive about his death. It is ambiguity that boosts the intellectual
effect of N é m e t h ' s title: we cannot tell w h o experiences more
repulsion, the heroine or we who assess her.
We have pointed out the presence of oxymoron, paradox, symbol,
allegory, irony and ambiguity in the scrutinized literary titles,
not excluding the possibility of finding additional titles that are
worthy of our critical attention. Still, we can assume that even a
more exhaustive list would not be too long. Further investigation
is needed to verify the hypothesis that mostly outstanding writers
gave sophisticated, puzzling titles to their works. If this is indeed
true, it proves that the interpretation of a great novel should
start with its great title.
8
ISTVÁN
1983:
Cs.
61-73.
VARGA: " A Z
e m b e r i é r t é k k a p c s o l a t o k r e g é n y t r a g é d i á j a " . In Alföld
1,