Nation-Building and Contested Identities: Romanian & Hungarian ...

KINGA-KORETTA SATAsions:” nevertheless, we do not want to disarm ourselves spiritually. It isperfectly true that we want to keep Hungarian racial characteristics by“isolation” and “seclusion.” We have the right to do this. But, inside thewalls of seclusion, we perform a serious and conscious work of building. 22The argument for presenting these strange solutions is metaphoricallyworded, emphasizing both a sense of extreme loss and the naturalness ofthe relation linking Hungarians in Romania to fellow Hungarians and separatingthem from any other “strangers:” “We are after a burial; and witha funeral disposition one stays with the relatives and does not go tostrangers, isn’t it?” 23Transylvanian Hungarians are commonly presented as in deep sorrowregarding their condition. Emil Grandpierre, for example, writingabout the novelist Mór Jókai on his anniversary, praises him by saying,“what a great comfort, encouragement, what a blessed serenity is his sweetHungarian humor! Especially for us, Transylvanians, anguishing in balladicdimness.” 24 It is important to note the reference to ballads, connotingthe statement with the common identification of Transylvania as the“land of ballads” (in the sense that it is an archaic region where one canstill collect popular ballads), but also emphasizing that it is a unique culturalterritory with ancient traditions. Moreover, the reference to balladsalso implies that Transylvania is a tragic place (as ballads are a tragicgenre). Gyula Walter characterizes Sándor Makkai in the same terms:“Basically, he is a Transylvanian personality. That is, a tragic character,a soul with dark tone. But the defending light of faith and art shines inhim. He does not deny his being Transylvanian. That would, in any case,show out of him involuntarily.” 25 Walter also emphasizes that this tragic“darkness” has at its very heart a shining light, the light equated with faithand art. This archetypal opposition is meant, in its turn, to show the ancestraland elementary nature of the Transylvanian character.Even non-Transylvanians by origin can become Transylvanian bycharacter in the above sense of the word, since it was the land that actuallyturned these people into genuine Transylvanians. Speaking aboutthe woman-writer, Irén Gulácsy, Gyula Walter acknowledged herbecoming truly part of Transylvanian literature by her own individualtransformation, which, in turn, also led her to achieve a full life: “IrénGulácsy is originally not from Transylvania. But under the mountains ofBihar her soul and personality has become totally Transylvanian, genuinelyours. We count her as ours with pride. … Her life and destiny hasunited here.” 26Being a Transylvanian Hungarian does not question, however, one’sbeing a part of Hungariandom in general. The specificity of Transylvanian50