A word like a hundred – Why is Parainesis still relevant today?

This is the greatest work of the last Czech years, the final expression of Kölcsey’s worldview. In it, Kölcsey directs his moral advice and philosophical explanations to his nephew, Kálmán, but not only the recipient, but the entire progressive youth of the reform era was brought up on the teachings of Parainesis. In this work, the poet-writer-politician articulates most clearly the spiritual and moral values ​​that determined his entire life and activities.

In this system of values, serving and uplifting the homeland is in the first place. The work is characterized by sentence-like wording, these are guiding thoughts, general commands, which are included in the text either as a summary of a train of thought or as their opening sentence, often supplemented by quotations, aphorisms, proverbs, and explained from them. Here are some examples of itemized editing: Worship the deity! Strive for knowledge! Love your country! Combining science with working life: this is the sacrifice that the son of the republic must strive for. Experience is the source of all knowledge. Persistence and stubbornness are opposed to each other like courage and recklessness. Life is a struggle! There is nothing in all of nature without an enemy and opposition. Chasing fame and glory is vanity. Beware of appearing to be something you are not!

The opposite of this is the round sentence used as a style structure, a multiple complex sentence. Kölcsey’s linguistic and stylistic characteristics were also influenced by ancient examples: “Many beautiful things were written by the wise, and often by the not-so-wise as well; they open up a rich source, from which we can draw admonition in good fate, consolation in bad, elevation in both, heart and mind enlightenment; but they also only affect us if they make us our own through feeling and thinking, if they mature within ourselves and are connected to our being, like the scent of flowers in the evening wind in which it bathed.”

I indicate the topicality of the work by commenting on the quotations. The first admonition I chose: “He who has felt and thought a lot in his life; and he didn’t let his feelings and thoughts fly away without a trace: he can collect such a treasure for himself, which provides rich nourishment for his soul in every phase of life, in all the changes of fortune.” We have repeatedly heard from several people that scientific and technical development is exponentially faster than emotional development. A lack of emotional intelligence warns us. We cannot process and live with the mass of information that rushes at us, because we do not get enough of the emotional basis associated with it. We do not experience catharsis, even on a daily basis. How could you create an everyday catharsis for yourself? Well, by picking big ones from different branches of culture. We see an exhibition, a theater performance, attend a concert, or if we have had a very busy day, we read at least one poem or short story in the evening. The emotional base serves as a good background for thinking and deepening.

The following admonition: “Love your country! You will be happy if, in the days of your husbandhood, you will be able to understand these words and feel them as you should. Patriotism is one of the most venerable passions of this bosom; but much is left to be desired before we can come into its pure possession.”

It is clear that the content of patriotism and active patriotism varies from age to age. Patriotism is essentially an emotional relationship that becomes conscious in the individual. Being patriotic today can mean, among other things, getting to know our culture, delving into the thoughts of our great ancestors, and admiring a beautiful domestic landscape. On our holidays, we dress up our souls, we strive every day to get to know our past, and we could go on and on. István Széchenyi was not a “patriot in mouth”, but a patriot in action. In his newspaper articles, he writes: “let’s be true patriots, not so much with our mouths as with our shoulders.”

The third current admonition: “Get used to this thought in good time; a person born in society does not belong to himself. There are countless benefits that accrue to us in social life every day; can we wish to live for free with these benefactions, like a tyrant on the wages of another’s sweat? Do you want to use the company? You have to do everything you can to maintain what you can do.”

It is clear that company is not a solitary company. Yet today this is typical – especially among young people. The company is not the space of network connections in the virtual space, not the field of the like hunter, but the company based on the personal togetherness of flesh and blood, together in space and time. Today, a psychological dependence on the world wide web has developed. Many people are getting used to social solitude. They want to be together, but at the same time they want to be somewhere else, they want to connect with others – virtually. There is no more alienating sight than when young people sit next to each other in a row and press their phones with two fingers. They talk like this with the person they will meet in an hour, but then they will talk on the phone with the person they were with an hour earlier. Vicious Circle. They need to be coaxed out of the holy trinity of Wi-Fi field strength-battery charge, the cell phone, like a snail out of its house.

It’s as if Kölcsey wrote Parainesis only in the 21st century, it’s so current! Let’s see another admonition! “To be in full possession of the language spoken by the people: this is the first and indispensable condition. You must strive not only for your speech to sound flawlessly from your lips; but also to be able to be an interpreter of your reasons and emotions, dependent on your will, with a kind flexibility, a rich variability, expressed clearly, and working strongly on the heart and soul.”

We couldn’t put it more precisely today either, just using slightly different words and with a different sentence structure. After all, who wouldn’t believe that someone who has good communication skills, has a rich vocabulary, mixes a hint of humor into his speech, even uses some sayings and proverbs, is much more persuasive, effective and successful. Sometimes good communication can even hide a possible lack of subject knowledge. Of course, only for a while. Knowledge and good speech prevail together.

A word like a hundred: let’s read it again Parainesist!