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JR Hungarian Studies %eviezu Vol. XXIX, Nos. 1-2 (Spring-Fall, 2002) Special Volume: Women and Hungary Part II Studies in Twentieth Century Politics, Education, History and Literature by: Katalin Fabian, Maria Palasik Andrea Peto, Agnes Huszar Vardy Agatha Schwartz, Katherine Gyekenyesi Gatto Plus review articles and book reviews guest editor: Agatha Schwartz HUNGARIAN STUDIES REVIEW HUNGARIAN STUDIES NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CANADA SZECHENYI LIBRARY VOL. 29, NOS. 1-2 (SPRING-FALL 2002) EDITORS GEORGE BISZTRAY N.F. DREISZIGER University of Toronto Royal Military College of Canada EDITORIAL ADVISERS OLIVER BOTAR GEZA JESZENSZKY University of Manitoba Budapest and Washington ILONA KOVACS MARIA KRISZTINKOVICH National Szechenyi Library Vancouver, B.C. BARNABAS A. RACZ ISTVAN MONOK Eastern Michigan U. National Szechenyi Library AGATHA SCHWARTZ THOMAS SAKMYSTER University of Ottawa University of Cincinnati THOMAS SPIRA S.B. VARDY U. P.E.I. Duquesne University SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER EVA TOMORY Toronto Correspondence should be addressed to: N. Dreisziger, Dept. of History, Royal Military College P.O.B. 17000 STN FORCES Kingston Ont. K7K 7B4 Canada. E-mail: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Articles appearing in the HSR are indexed in: HISTORICAL ABSTRACTS and, AMERICA: HISTORY AND LIFE. Copyright © (2002) the Hungarian Studies Review. ISSN 0713-8083 (print, replacing 0317-204X); ISSN 1705-8422 (online) The Hungarian Studies Review is an interdisciplinary journal devoted to the pub- lication of articles and book reviews relating to Hungary and Hungarians. Since its launching in 1974, the Review has been a forum for the scholarly discussion of issues in Hungarian history, politics and cultural affairs. Subscriptions for individuals are $15.00 per annum. Membership in the Hun- garian Studies Association of Canada includes a subscription. Institutional sub- scriptions are $24.00. For further information, visit: www.hungarianstudies.org and www.oszk.hu/kiadvany/hsr/hsr.htm (replacing: www.ccsp.sfu.ca/calj.hsr) Statements and opinions expressed in the HSR are those of the individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the journal's editors. Desk-top typesetting by N.F. Dreisziger. Printed in Hungary. Distributed by the National Szechenyi Library: Budavari Palota, F Epiilet, 1827 Budapest, Hungary. Special Volume: Women and Hungary Part II Studies in Twentieth Century Politics, Education, History and Literature by: Katalin Fabian, Maria Palasik Andrea Peto, Agnes Huszar Vardy Agatha Schwartz Katherine Gyekenyesi Gatto Plus review articles and book reviews guest editor Agatha Schwartz Forthcoming in our next volume: (Vol. XXX, spring-fall 2003) Hungary and the U.S.A. edited by N. F. Dreisziger Studies and review articles by Tibor Giant Tibor Frank Nandor Dreisziger Gergely Romsics* Thomas Sakmyster* Judit Szapor* S. Bela Vardy Allan Walker Bela Bodo and Kenneth McRobbie * Tentative CONTENTS Another Contribution to Hungarian Women's Studies A preface by AGATHA SCHWARTZ v The Illusion of Inclusion: The Political Significance of Women's Groups in Hungary KATALIN FABIAN 1 Women in Technical Higher Education and in the Sciences in 20lh Century Hungary MARIA PALASIK 25 Women's Rights in Stalinist Hungary: The Anti-Abortion Campaign of 1952 ANDREA PETO 49 Forgotten Victims of World War II: Hungarian Women in Soviet Forced Labour Camps AGNES HUSZAR VARDY 77 The Centre and the Periphery in Gizella Mollinary's Novel Betevedt Europaba AGATHA SCHWARTZ 93 Faith vs. Fate: Ildiko Enyedi's Magic Hunter (a film review) KATHERINE GYEKENYESIGATTO 105 Ilona and Karl (a review article) LEE CONGDON Ill Other Review Articles Rare Hungarian Books and Maps ENIKO MOLNAR BASA 119 Once more about the Origins EVA KOSSUTH 125 Hungarian Connections to Britain and America ALICE FREIFELD 131 Short reviews of books by and/or about women Andrea Peto. Rajk Julia [Julia Rajk] Feminizmus es tortenelem sorozat [Feminism and history series], Budapest: Balassi, 2001. Reviewed by Janos M. Rainer 135 Daisy Chorin (Mrs. R. Strasser) and Andras D. Ban. Az Andrassy uttol a Park Avenue-ig: Fejezetek Chorin Ferenc eletebol (1879-1964) [From Andrassy Boulevard to Park Avenue; Chapters from the life of Ferenc Chorin (1879-1964)]. Budapest: Osiris Kiado, 1999. Reviewed by Esther E. Vitalis 136 Our Contributors 139 Preface: Another Contribution to Hungarian Women's Studies Agatha Schwartz The present volume, Women and Hungary, Part II: Studies in Twentieth Century Politics, Education, History and Literature, for the second time in the history of the Hungarian Studies Review presents essays that deal specifically with women's studies. Our 1999 volume, Women and Hun- gary: Reclaiming Images and Histories, was the first issue of our journal to feature articles about women in Hungarian history and society, politics, literature and the arts. In that regard, the focus of the present volume has remained the same. The main difference to the 1999 volume is that these essays relate to the 20th century only and that, in addition to the five full- length studies, the present volume includes two review articles as well. The topics covered reflect the diversity of the discipline of women's studies. The contribution of scholars from within and outside Hungary, similarly to our previous volume, speaks for the fact that research on Hungarian women is an area that continues to expand and attracts more and more national and international attention — a very positive and welcome development of the post-communist era indeed. It also confirms the diversity of what the term "women and Hungary" implies, namely an entity that defies geographic and ethnic boundaries.1 Katalin Fabian examines the place and significance of women's groups in Hungary since 1989. Despite the rapid changes in Hungarian society since the end of communism, women's participation in politics has faced numerous obstacles due to various factors such as an atmosphere of anti-feminism and deeply entrenched ideas regarding gender roles, which have traditionally kept women out of the realm of politics. Women's groups have therefore entered into alternative political actions and new forms of engagement. In her study, Fabian includes the discussion of independent, party-affiliate and trade-union affiliated women's groups. For some groups, maintaining a consistent profile has proven to be a chal- lenge. She concludes that women's groups in Hungary most significantly promote themselves and their interests in the media, through modifying symbols, through educational activities and by providing social services. This gives women's groups an alternative political voice in Hungarian society. Although women's groups have only rarely assumed a direct role in electoral politics, their activism allowed women to enter the political arena through the "back door." Maria Palasik presents a brief history on women's thorny road to technical higher education and the technological and scientific community in Hungary. Her study fills an important gap regarding the presence and contribution that Hungarian women have given to the advancement of science both in Hungary and in the world. Although, in her own words, the aim of her paper is not to attack the closely knit male scientific community, with the statistics that she presents, Palasik cleverly demon- strates the gender gap that still exists in the world of science and technol- ogy in Hungary today. She mentions some encouraging numbers that speak in favour of an increasing female presence among, for instance, students in engineering after 1998; however, women are still heavily underrepresented when it comes to the distribution of research grants, professorships, or representation on scientific committees and in the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. In 2000, out of the 303 OTKA (Hunga- rian Scientific Research Fund) grants, only 33 went to women; out of the 310 members of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, only 10 were women and none came from technical fields. There are virtually no women in managerial positions and no academic research institute has had a female director. The author explains this sad state of affairs with the following factors: Hungarian women have been present in technological higher education only for the past 50 years or so; but what is even more important is the prevailing structure of the Hungarian family and its traditional role distribution which favours a support system for a faster career advancement for men yet maintains the double burden for women. The lack of household services contributes to this situation. In the last part of her paper, Palasik briefly outlines the history of the careers of some important Hungarian female scientists, among them Maria Telkes, pioneer in solar technology. Andrea Peto bases her study mainly on archival material. She examines the time of the demographic policy known as the "Ratko-era." The changes in Hungary's abortion laws came following the 1948 capture of political power by the Communists. As a part of the attempt to impose totalitarian rule, between 1947 and 1953, women's bodies also became the subject of state regulation. Abortion was not completely prohibited; rather, a committee examined any existing medical reasons that would make a woman a candidate for abortion. "Social reasons" were not accep- table, for in socialist Hungary no woman could claim that she was burdened by social or economic circumstances. Yet those who did not want children found a way to have an abortion, regulations notwithstan-