László F. Földényi Explained

László F. Földényi (born 19 April 1952 in Debrecen)^[1] is a Hungarian critic, essayist and art theorist.^[2] He lives in Budapest where he is Professor of Art Theory at the University of Theatre, Film and Television.^[3] He has been a member of the German Academy for Language and Literature since 2009.^[4]

Works

Having published over 15 books, Földényi is a prolific writer. However only three collections of essays have been translated and published in English.

Melancholy

Melancholy, a cultural history of the concept, was published in Hungarian in 1984 and not translated into English until 2016. In an essay on melancholia, noted writer Péter Nádas suggests that as a practicing melancholic, Földényi has written a book that ‘provides a realization [about melancholy] similar to the one modern astronomy reaches about black holes’.^[5] Földényi posits that eminent artists are often melancholic as they are aware of their mortality.^[6]

Dostoyevsky Reads Hegel in Siberia and Bursts into Tears

Dostoyevsky Reads Hegel in Siberia and Bursts into Tears is a collection of Földényi’s essays spanning the two decades to 2015. The book is considered by some critics to be a critique with religious undertones^[7] of an overly rational Enlightenment tradition. Writing in The New Yorker, James Wood labelled the book's depiction of the Enlightenment a 'grievous caricature.'^[8] In spite of these criticisms, the essays can be considered a demonstration of the author's erudition and knowledge of intellectual history.^[9]

Prizes

• Blue Salon Prize of the Literaturhaus Frankfurt (2002)
• Friedrich-Gundolf Prize of the German Academy of Language and Literature (2005)
• Leipzig Book Award for European Understanding (2020)^[10]
• Darmstadt Jury Literature Prize (2020)^[11]

Bibliography

• Melancholy, translated by Tim Wilkinson, Yale University Press, 2016,
• Dostoyevsky Reads Hegel in Siberia and Bursts into Tears, translated by Ottilie Mulzet, Yale University Press, 2020,
• The Glance of the Medusa: The Physiognomy of Mysticism, translated by Jozefina Komporaly, University of Chicago Press, 2021,

Critical studies and reviews of Földényi's work

Dostoyevsky reads Hegel in Siberia and bursts into tears

• Wood, James . James Wood (critic) . June 1, 2020 . . The Critics. Books . The New Yorker . 96 . 15 . 64–67 . 2022-01-31-->. ^[12]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Leipzig Bookfair Program - LAUDATIO TO LÁSZLÓ FÖLDÉNYI . 7 November 2021 . 26 May 2021.
2. Web site: Newport . Jason . Toward Horizontal Thought: An Interview with László Földényi . Three Percent . 7 November 2021 . 13 April 2017.
3. Web site: LÁSZLÓ F. FÖLDÉNYI . PEN America . 7 November 2021.
4. Web site: Members - László F. Földényi . Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung . 7 November 2021.
5. Book: Nádas . Péter . Fire and Knowledge . 2007 . Farrer, Strauss and Giroux . New York . 245.
6. Web site: Loomis . Nicky . Happy with Tears: On Melancholy as a Hungarian Condition . Los Angeles Review of Books . 7 November 2021 . 20 July 2016.
7. Web site: Haas . Felix . Dostoyevsky Reads Hegel in Siberia and Bursts into Tears by László F. Földényi . World Literature Today . 7 November 2021.
8. Wood . James . The Scholar Starting Brawls with the Enlightenment . The New Yorker . 7 November 2021 . 25 May 2020.
9. Web site: Halla . Barbara . What's New in Translation: February 2020 . Asymptote . 7 November 2021 . 17 February 2020.
10. Web site: László F. Földényi wins Leipzig Book Prize for European Understanding . Hungarian Literature Online . 7 November 2021.
11. Web site: László F. Földényi Wins New Literary Prize in Darmstadt . Hungarian Literature Online . 7 November 2021 . 29 September 2020.
12. Online version is titled "The scholar starting brawls with the Enlightenment".