The word nation (at this time in Hungary) did not mean simply a geographical collective of one people. Nation meant the nobility and their ability to control the political landscape of Hungary. To be Magyar was not to belong to the people; to be Magyar was to belong to the ruling class.
Read MoreI started this book hoping for an opportunity to learn about Slovakian culture through a historical lens. I did not get what I was looking for. But I did discover an interesting discussion on how the development of a spoken and written Slovakian language affected the collective consciousness, but perhaps more fascinating-- how language affected the study of Slovakian history.
Read MoreOppression, like many things, is a spectrum. There are a few people who exist at the extremes-- either free from any persecution or, on the other extreme, persecuted from every possible angle. But all too often we don't discuss the rest of the spectrum in the middle, where the relationships between oppressor and oppressed blur, become tangled, and, in their bewildering complexities, reveal a great deal about a society's true self. It is easy-- especially when attempting to make a case for one specific people-- to focus on the surface level of their immediate reality. But it is far more important to take the time and energy to delve deeper, into the tangle, where you can learn the whole truth.
Read More
