Imre Madách de Sztregova et Kelecsény (20 January 1823 – 5 October 1864) was a Hungarian aristocrat, writer, poet, lawyer and politician. His major work is ''

The Tragedy of Man ''The Tragedy of Man'' () is a play written by the Hungarian author Imre Madách. It was first published in 1861. The play is considered to be one of the major works of Hungarian literature and is one of the most often staged Hungarian plays to ...

'' (''Az ember tragédiája'', 1861). It is a

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

tic

poem Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

approximately 4000 lines long, which elaborates on ideas comparable to

Goethe Johann Wolfgang (von) Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German polymath who is widely regarded as the most influential writer in the German language. His work has had a wide-ranging influence on Western literature, literary, Polit ...

's ''

Faust Faust ( , ) is the protagonist of a classic German folklore, German legend based on the historical Johann Georg Faust (). The erudite Faust is highly successful yet dissatisfied with his life, which leads him to make a deal with the Devil at a ...

'' and Milton's ''

Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an Epic poetry, epic poem in blank verse by the English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The poem concerns the Bible, biblical story of the fall of man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their ex ...

''. The author was encouraged and advised by

János Arany János Arany (; archaic English: John Arany; 2 March 1817 – 22 October 1882) was a Hungarian poet, writer, translator and journalist. He is often said to be the "Shakespeare of ballads" – he wrote more than 102 ballads that have been transl ...

, one of the most famous of the 19th-century Hungarian

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

Life

Madách was born in his family castle in Alsósztregova, the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

(today Dolná Strehová,

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

) in 1823 at the heart of a wealthy noble family. From 1829 Madách studied at the

Piarist The Piarists (), officially named the Order of Poor Clerics Regular of the Mother of God of the Pious Schools (), abbreviated SchP, is a religious order of clerics regular of the Catholic Church founded in 1617 by Spanish priest Joseph Calasanz ...

school of

Vác Vác (; ; ; ) is a thousand-year old city in Pest county in Hungary with approximately 35,000 inhabitants. The archaic spelling of the name is ''Vácz''. Location Vác is located north of Budapest on the eastern bank of the Danube river, below t ...

. During a

cholera Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...

epidemic he stayed in

Buda Buda (, ) is the part of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, that lies on the western bank of the Danube. Historically, “Buda” referred only to the royal walled city on Castle Hill (), which was constructed by Béla IV between 1247 and ...

in 1831. In 1837 he began his studies at the university of Pest. In 1842 he officially became a lawyer. He took part in the Hungarian revolution of 1848–1849 and was imprisoned; on his return to his small estate in the county of Nógrád, he found that his family life had meanwhile been completely wrecked. This only increased his natural tendency to melancholy, and he withdrew from public life till 1861, devoting his time mainly to the composition of his chief work, ''Az ember tragédiája'' ("The Tragedy of Man"). He died in Alsósztregova.

Works

*''A civilizátor'' (''The Civiliser'') – 1859 *''Mózes'' (''

Moses In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...

'') – 1861 *''Az ember tragédiája'' (''The Tragedy of Man'') – 1861

''The Tragedy of Man''

The dramatic poem ''The Tragedy of Man'' is Madách's major and most enduring piece of writing. The tragic events of the failed Hungarian Revolution of 1848/49 in addition to the deaths of close family members such as his sister and her husband, captain Karl Balog de Mánko-Bük, and his temporary stay in prison fueled the emotional status in which he completed his work. Today it is the central piece of Hungarian theaters' repertoire and is mandatory reading for students in secondary school. Many lines have become common quotes in Hungary. Madách, then a country nobleman with virtually no literary experience, sent the work to the poet Arany who enthusiastically encouraged him and suggested some emendations to the text. The piece was at first only published in printed form, not staged, because the many changes of scene (15 scenes) were hard to come by through the technical standards of the day. The main characters are Adam, Eve and

Lucifer The most common meaning for Lucifer in English is as a name for the Devil in Christian theology. He appeared in the King James Version of the Bible in Isaiah and before that in the Vulgate (the late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bib ...

. The three travel through time to visit different turning-points in human history and Lucifer tries to convince Adam that life is (will be) meaningless and mankind is doomed. Adam and Lucifer are introduced at the beginning of each scene, with Adam assuming various important historical roles and Lucifer usually acting as a servant or confidant. Eve enters only later in each scene. ''The Tragedy of Man'' contains fifteen scenes, with ten historical periods represented.

Honors

A postage stamp was issued in his honor by Hungary on 1 July 1932. On 23 June 2010, ''The Tragedy of Man'' is 150 years old - Miniature Sheet issued by Hungary.colnect.com/en/stamps/stamp/269444-150_years_of_"The_Tragedy_of_Man"_by_Madách_Imre-For_Youth-Hungary

References

External links

The Tragedy of Man
(translation by

George Szirtes George Szirtes (; born 29 November 1948) is a British poet and translator from the Hungarian language into English. Originally from Hungary, he has lived in the United Kingdom for most of his life after coming to the country as a refugee at the ...

)
The Tragedy of Man
(translation by J. C. W. Horne)
The Tragedy of Man
(translation by

Iain Macleod Iain Norman Macleod (11 November 1913 – 20 July 1970) was a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician. A playboy and professional Contract bridge, bridge player in his twenties, after war service Macleod worked for the ...

)
Tragedy of the Man
(translation by Ottó Tomschey)
Mihály Zichy's Illustrations of The Tragedy of Man

text, concordances and frequency lists {{DEFAULTSORT:Madach, Imre 1823 births 1864 deaths People from Veľký Krtíš District Poets from the Austrian Empire 19th-century Hungarian dramatists and playwrights 19th-century Hungarian male writers Dramatists and playwrights from the Austrian Empire