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  • Open Daily: 10am - 10pm
    Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm

    3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
    612-822-4611

Open Daily: 10am - 10pm | Alley-side Pickup: 10am - 7pm
3038 Hennepin Ave Minneapolis, MN
612-822-4611
The Invisible Shining: The Cult of Mátyás Rákosi in Stalinist Hungary, 19451956

The Invisible Shining: The Cult of Mátyás Rákosi in Stalinist Hungary, 19451956

Apor, Balazs

Hardcover

Religion General Austrian & Hungarian HistorySocial Movements

Currently unavailable to order

ISBN10: 9633861926
ISBN13: 9789633861929
Publisher: Central European Univ Pr
Published: Dec 15 2017
Pages: 416
Weight: 1.65
Height: 1.10 Width: 6.10 Depth: 9.10
Language: English

This book offers a detailed analysis of the construction, reception, and eventual decline of the cult of the Hungarian Communist Party Secretary, Mátyás Rákosi, one of the most striking examples of orchestrated adulation in the Soviet bloc. While his cult never approached the magnitude of that of Stalin, Rákosi's ambition to outshine the other best disciples and become the best of the best was manifest in his diligence in promoting a Soviet-type ritual system in Hungary. The main argument of The Invisible Shining is that the cult of personality is not just a curious aspect of communist dictatorship, it is an essential element of it. The monograph is primarily concerned with techniques and methods of cult construction, as well as the role various institutions played in the creation of mythical representations of political figures. While engaging with a wider international literature on Stalinist cults, the author uses the case of Rákosi to explore how personality cults are created, how such cults are perceived, and how they are eventually unmade. The book addresses the success--generally questionable--of such projects, as well as their uncomfortable legacies.

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