One hundred and twenty years ago, on May 5, 1904, Mór Jókai, the greatest creator of Hungarian romantic prose, the author of Egy magyar nabob, Zoltán Kárpáthy, A kősívű ember fiai and Fekete gémants, the most widely read Hungarian writer, died.
He was born in Komárom on February 18, 1825. He came from an intellectual family with noble roots, his father was József Ásvay Jókay, a lawyer and heiress, and his mother was Mária Pulay. He completed his elementary schooling in his hometown, while spending two years in Bratislava as an exchange student. He was a hard-working, intelligent, inquisitive student of the Komárom high school, who also spent his free time learning languages. His language teacher was his later brother-in-law, Ferenc Vály, who recognized his young student’s talent early on and decided to turn him into a writer. However, Jókai was training to become a painter at that time – he only “engaged” himself with writing later, already in the papal college.
In 1841, he moved to Pápá, where he became a classmate and good friend of Sándor Petrovics (later Petőfi). From Pápa he went to Kecskemét, where he studied law, but also achieved his first literary success here: in 1843 The Jewish boy his drama won praise at the drama competition of the Hungarian Society of Scientists. He practiced law in Komárom until 1846, then in Pest, after which he took the bar exam. In the end, he did not start practicing, because his first short stories and his novel published in 1846, a Weekdays his success permanently committed him to writing. In 1846, he became a collaborator and editor of Élétképek, then Jelenkor, and a member of the Society of Ten. In March 1848, together with Petőfi, he participated in the drafting of the 12 points as one of the leading figures of the revolutionary youth, and to express his democratic sentiments more fully, he changed his name to yt i. However, due to his marriage to the actress Róza Laborfalvi, his friendship with Petőfi was shaken, and his mother also disowned him, since Róza was eight years older than the writer, and he also had an illegitimate daughter.
Jókai became Kossuth’s agent in the fall of 1848: during the War of Independence, he fled with the government to Debrecen, where he started the pro-peace Evening Newspapers at the beginning of 1849. He witnessed the recapture of Buda, then followed the government to Szeged and Arad. After the fall of the war of independence, he hid in Bükk, Tardona – from this experience was born in 1850 the Diary of a shelterer, which could only appear under the pseudonym Sajó. In the meantime, his wife obtained a permit issued to the defenders of Komárom for him, so his life was no longer in immediate danger; He was able to return to Pest in 1850.
On a lithograph by Adolf Dauthage (circa 1872-73). Source: Wikipedia
From then on, he was only concerned with writing, his novels were published one after the other, he founded and edited newspapers: from 1854 the Vasárnapi Újság, from 1858 the tabloid Üstökös, from 1863 A Hont, from 1867 the political paper Igazmondó. In 1858, he became a corresponding member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, and in 1861, a regular member. Between 1861 and 1896, he was a member of the National Assembly, Kálmán Tisza’s confidant throughout. Jókai was also a knight of the Order of Saint Stephen, a member of the Kisfaludy Society, the president of the Petőfi Society from 1876 to 1903, and an honorary member of the Dugonics Society.
From 1880, he was less involved in politics, the heir to the throne, Rudolf, involved him The Austro-Hungarian Monarchy in Writing and Pictures to edit the series. He lost his wife in 1886. In 1894, for his fiftieth anniversary as a writer, his works were published in a one-hundred-volume special edition, and for them he received a “national gift” of one hundred thousand forints. Writing brought him financial security and well-being, so the family, which was afraid of inheritance, was justifiably shocked when he married the barely twenty-year-old actress Nagy (Grósz) Bella in 1899. His adopted daughter, Róza Festyné Jókai, and her nieces wanted to put the very clear-minded writer straight into the madhouse. In 1900, he and his wife visited the World Exhibition in Paris, where French writers welcomed him with great celebration.
In his study in the late 1890s. Source: Wikipedia
Jókai died at the age of 79, on May 5, 1904, in Budapest as a result of heart paralysis caused by pneumonia. He was cremated in the lobby of the National Museum – where Kossuth was buried a few years earlier.
Literary history divides his works and literary activity into several eras. In the main works of the first career period between 1850–65 (A Hungarian nabob, Zoltán Kárpathy, The new landlord, By the time we get old) the national past appears as a myth. In the next decade, after the heroes of the reform era, he presented the worker-friendly entrepreneur, the great inventor or diplomat, i.e. the self-made man, as a positive figure (Sons of a man of stone, Black diamonds, The golden man, God is one, A notorious adventurer). In his third era (Rich are poor, A tnarrow-eyed lady, Spurple rose) drew his themes from earlier events of the 19th century, relied on personal experiences, depicted the aristocratic circles of Komárom and the inhabitants of the Pest suburbs. Great ideas no longer appeared in these novels, at that time the author was mainly concerned with curiosities.
In his last years, he was influenced by late romanticism and decadence, the works of Baudelaire, Swinburne, and Wilde. His plays were met with resounding success, yet they became obsolete in his lifetime. Johann Strauss made from his works The Gypsy Baron his operetta and Erkel Dózsa György the text of his opera.
Jókai in his holiday home in Svábhegy around 1900. Source: Wikipedia
His romantic works have made him the most read Hungarian writer to date. He created a real national novel with his individual tools, his works sensitively depict the people’s desires and disappointments, dreams and illusions, as well as sometimes their self-delusions. His writings testify to a unique world of fantasy and a sure skill in form. A rich and twisty plot, sensitive descriptions, and lively dialogues make his novels readable, from which many successful film adaptations have been made.
His statue stands in several cities (Zagráb, Révkomárom, Kazincbarcika), theaters in Békéscsaba and Komárom were named after him, and a small planet was also named after him. Several books have been published about his life and work, for example by Kálmán Mikszáth a The life and times of Mór Jókai. In 2020, the Jókai encyclopediawhich provides a comprehensive picture of the writer’s rich world.
