Eugene Rákosi and Louis Dóczi, the author of the comedy The Kiss, who do not come within the limits of this book, prefer to deal with so-called social problems which are not really of sufficient importance to deserve literary treatment.
The influence of journalism is steadily increasing, and as journalism is favourable to the feuilleton, that species of literature has been prolific in short stories and sketches. There are two masters of the feuilleton, of whom it is necessary to say a few words. They are Kálmán Mikszáth and Francis Herczeg.
Kálmán Mikszáth (born 1849) is Jókai's greatest follower. He has not the brilliant imagination and poetic idealism of Jókai, but he is vivid, witty and original. His best work, The Good People of Palécz,[1] is a volume of short stories, all drawn from the life of the people and some of them written with thrilling tragic power.
Mikszáth's humour gains its depth and charm from his power of detecting the attractive and poetical even in the simplest circumstances of life. The story of St. Peter's Umbrella begins by telling that the inhabitants of a lonely little mountain village had never seen an umbrella, and that when on one occasion they discovered a large red one they thought it was a gift of St. Peter. Upon this foundation he builds up a charming story. He has also written a very successful satirical novel entitled The New Zrinyiász. Nicholas Zrinyi, the hero of Szigetvár, rises from his grave to find himself amidst the altered conditions of modern Hungary. There is great surprise and embarrassment everywhere. The character of each
- ↑ The Palócz race was descended from the Kumanians, but has been amalgamated with the Hungarians for centuries. Mikszáth himself is of Palócz origin.
