Literary Journal 2023/3. Garden

The tradition of Hungarian fiction on the theme of gardens – in the light of developments in world literature – can be explored mainly through lesser-known works, or works that do not only present the garden in an idyllic perspective. In literature, the garden is not only a place of relaxation, creation or agriculture, but also a place of constraints, disappointment and even death. It allows space for action and contemplation, it is a place that is intrinsically linked to human existence, historically and culturally defined, both concrete and symbolic. Our interviews explore the nature of the garden in relation to nature and culture from the perspective of philosophy, cultural studies, human ecology or landscape and garden architecture. The interpretations also provide a look at each period, from the 18th century to recent Hungarian poetry. The compilation also explores how the garden, as a particularly complex and rich cultural phenomenon, can be understood in the context of the renewed (literary) scientific framework of the 21st century, for example from the perspective of research directions such as biopoetics, ecocriticism, posthumanism and critical plant studies. A series of interviews and essays are interspersed with garden-inspired essays by fiction writers. Among the illustrations in the issue are reproductions of archival photographs and postcards, and a taste of not only the classical international and Hungarian landscape and garden painting traditions, but also the efforts of contemporary Hungarian nature and Land Art artists.