Voyage to Kazohinia: A Diametric Dystopia (2)

"The ABC of the Diametric Model, Twenty Years On" by Christopher Badcock, Psychology Today, July 5, 2017

As I pointed out in a recent post, what is today known as the diametric model of the mind and mental illness was stunningly anticipated by Sándor Szathmári (1897–1974) in his novel, Voyage to Kazohinia, first published in Hungarian in 1941. To the best of my knowledge, this is the earliest anticipation of the idea that autism and psychosis might be opposites—despite the author seemingly knowing nothing of autism or of the work of Hans Asperger, who was about to publish his first account of Autistichen Psychopathen im Kindesalter in wartime Austria.

Voyage to Kazohinia: A Diametric Dystopia

"Voyage to Kazohinia: A Diametric Dystopia" by Christopher Badcock, Psychology Today, May 6, 2017

"The diametric model of mental illness was anticipated in a novel of 1941."

Badcock summarizes the schema of Szathmári's novel. He notes that Gulliver proves incapable of recognizing the similarity between his Britain and the irrational Behins. Later Badcock notes that the behins are tangled up by their own mental constructs, unable to engage objective reality.

"But by now many readers of these posts will already have noticed that to present-day eyes the Hins look very much as if they collectively suffer from high functioning autism spectrum disorder (ASD); while the Behins are afflicted with diametrically opposite psychotic spectrum disorder (PSD). This remarkable book, in other words, prefigured the diametric model of mental illness by a full fifty years. In Szathmári’s words, the Hin and Behin represented “Two worlds, which could never perceive each other simply because the other was not a separate entity but the reverse of itself…” Like mentalistic versus mechanistic cognition, these were “opposite worldviews,” the former the “positive” of the other “negative.”"

Badcock finds the translation somewhat wanting, but also regrets that this "masterpiece" so relevant to psychological understanding and today's world has been overlooked.

"But its author deserves full credit, not only for writing one of the most brilliant satires of modern times, but also for implicitly understanding the diametrically opposite nature of autism and psychosis, mentalistic and mechanistic cognition—not to mention the threat to sanity and civilization of hyper-mentalism."

Badcock was informed of this novel by one Simone Hickman. Perhaps it is possible to learn more about her?

This is a unique and remarkable tribute. I am not familiar with Badcock's work or the concepts he uses, but if he recognizes a psychological dualism here, he, or we in any case, should recognize that this mirrors an ideological and rock-bottom societal dualism patterned in the modern world.

Psychoanalyzing Karinthy

Many Hungarian intellectuals of the early 20th century were influenced by psychoanalysis, Frigyes Karinthy included. He incorporated psychological themes in his serious and parodic works. Karinthy was a humorist, but the reviewer of this book seems to be lacking in that department. In the reviewer's "professional" estimation Karinthy is judged to have been even prior to the brain tumor "of an extremely psychopathic disposition with morbid hyperexcitability." This diagnosis is itself hilarious.

Review: A Journey Round my Skull by E. J. (1940), International Journal of Psycho-Analysis, 21: 246-247.

This much advertised book is written in a sensational way about a sensational theme. It describes how the author, an Hungarian man of letters, gradually became aware of having a cerebral tumour, and his mental experiences during a long and dangerous operation without an anæsthetic. The experience is certainly remarkable and poignant enough to make a description of it by a really observant man one of great interest. In the present case, however, the patient appears already to have been of an extremely psychopathic disposition with morbid hyperexcitability. The mental experiences he describes, therefore, are only in part direct responses to the remarkable current situation, being in large part made up of fears, resentments, and blindnesses arising from characteristics of his own personality. These extraneous features impair the interest inherent in the description of the experiences, but on the other hand, they furnish material of interest for any psychologist whose attention is specially aroused by the story.

Omaĝe al Kálmán Kalocsay (5)

Estas multaj trezoroj en la 8-voluma Omaĝe al Kálmán Kalocsay: el Abaújszántó ĝis la Esperanta Parnaso: pri la vivo kaj plena verkaro de D-ro Kálmán Kalocsay; komp. Ada Csiszár (Budapest: A. Csiszár / KAL-ĈI-Dokumentaro, 1998-2002).

Jen du eroj, kiujn mi enretigis:

• “Ahasvero de amo XI”/ “Ahasuerus of Love XI” by Kálmán Kalocsay, translated from Esperanto by Marjorie Boulton
• “Flava Rozo” & Kálmán Kalocsay de Éva BENICKÁ

“Flava Rozo” estas karesnomo kiun Kalocsay donis al paciento; ankaŭ ĝi estas titolo de romano de Mór Jókai. Kalocsay ankaŭ vortludis per la lasta verso de La Tragedio de l' Homo. Konstateblas la afableco de la personeco kaj profesia mieno de Kalocsay.

Sándor Szathmári plu (5)

Jen nove miareteje:

• “Az uncinnátus roham” [“La atako de uncinnátus”] de Sándor Szathmári
• Dorskovrilo de Vane (Hiába) de Sándor Szathmári, elhungarigis István Mészáros
• “Strazniczky, la hungara patro” de György Moldova, tradukis Sándor Szathmári, Hungara Vivo, 1986, n-ro 6, p. 206-208.
• Konfeso pri mia urbo de Mihály Gergely, trad. Sándor Szathmári, Hungara Vivo, 1966, n-ro 2, p. 10-11.
• Lajos Lesznai: Recenzo de Maŝinmondo, Hungara Vivo, 1965, n-ro 2, p. 22.

“Az uncinnátus roham” estas hungarlingva postlasita manuskripto ne tradukita. Esperanto István Mészáros resumas la aferon.

Mészáros ankaŭ Esperantigis la dorskovrilon de Hiába (Vane), la travivintaĵon el la forlasita verko kiun Szathmári prilaboris en 1932, antaŭvidante la vojfinon de stalinismo. Vi povas legi plu en Esperanto:

• Sándor Szathmári, “Vane ‑ La estonteco (fragmento)”, tradukis el la hungara Lariko Golden, p. 202-205; kun Éva Tófalvi, “Szathmári, la hungara Orwell,” Esperanto, decembro 1997, 90: 12 (#1098), p. 202-204. 
•  Éva Tófalvi, “La du testamentoj de Sándor Szathmári,” Fonto, n-ro 179, novembro 1995, p. 25-30.

Mi lastatempe enretigis kelkajn malnovajn recenzojn de novelaro Maŝinmondo. Oni malofte emfazas tiel, sed Lesznai laŭdas la stilon de Szathmári en sia recenzo. La enhavo imponus al la eksteresperantista mondo. Lesznai ankaŭ prikomentas la enkondukon de William Auld. Lesznai malkonsentas la perspektivon de Szathmári ĉi-punkte:

Szathmári montras per tiuj ĉi du noveloj, kien kondukas la percepto de la izola rigardo de fizika kaj socia movoformo. La moderna filozofio jam montris, kiel granda eraro estas la intermikso de socia vivo kun aliaj malpli altaj movoformoj. Ni neniam devas forgesi, kiujn konsekvencojn tiris la naci-faŝistoj el sia ideo de la paralelo de homa vivo kun biologia estado. El tia percepto sekvas seneviteble kontraŭhumanistaj konvinkoj.

Mi supozas, kian ajn celas Lesznai, la termino "movoformo" pensligiĝus kun dialektika materiismo. Lesznai komentas nedetale pri la ceteraj rakontoj en la novelaro.

Mihály Gergely revenas kaj omaĝas al sia hejmurbo Miskolc en nostalgia memuaro Konfeso pri mia urbo pri sia juneco kaj la etoso de tiu industria hungara urbo.

“Strazniczky, la hungara patro” estas amuzega satiro pri utiliĝo kaj adaptiĝo de mizera aktoro al propagandaj prioritatoj de sinsekvaj hungaraj reĝimoj.

Frigyes Karinthy's Skull-Journey & Esperanto

This book by Frigyes Karinthy looks like a great read:

'A Journey Round My Skull' by Frigyes Karinthy

And note this sentence:

"This funny-peculiar book from an author whose extraordinarily diverse career spanned Swiftian satires, a translation of Winnie the Pooh, a short story entitled ‘Chains’ in which he proposed the idea of ‘six degrees of separation’, and the presidency of the Hungarian Esperanto society, may indeed relish its distortions and comic incongruities (it was advertised using Karinthy’s own slogan — ‘The Newest Novel of the Famed Tumorist’)."

Henriko Zamenhof, kosmetikisto

Dankon al La Balta Ondo, 30 Decembro 2011:

Forgesita gazeto de Henriko Zamenhof

"Li specialiĝis pri haŭtmalsanoj kaj higieno. Li ne nur kuracis, sed ankaŭ verkis, redaktis kaj eldonis", ekz. revuon Kosmetyka.

Libroterapio de Maria Sandelin

Jen interesa afiŝo ĉe la La Blogo de Maria:

Kaptita de rakonto, Aŭgusto 27, 2011.

Maria Sandelin estas bibliotekisto, supozeble en subfako libroterapio: ŝi priskribas legaĵojn de mortontojn laŭ sia profesia sperto.  Tio ne estas miasubfako, sed antaŭ du-tri jardekoj min interesis biblioterapio: mi volis konstati eblajn pli vastajn uzeblaĵojn de ĝiaj metodoj.

Nekonata teksto de Zamenhof retrovita

La kuracista sinkompreno de Zamenhof: Nekonata Zamenhofa teksto retrovita de Reinhard Haupenthal, kun . . .

Antaŭparolo al T.E.K.A.-Jarlibro, 1909 de L. L. Zamenhof

. . . en La Ondo de Esperanto, 2010. № 12 (194).