Language:
German
Year of publication:
2016
Titel der Quelle:
S: I. M. O. N.
Angaben zur Quelle:
2 (2016) 59-69
Keywords:
Jews Legal status, laws, etc. 20th century
;
History
;
Antisemitism History 20th century
;
Sex History 20th century
;
Marriage law
Abstract:
This paper introduces the everyday realities of "race defilement" practices in early 1940s Hungary through a case study. I argue that race defilement was an integral part of the Hungarian orsegvaltas, "the changing of the guards", in which the so-called "Christian" middle class tried to push their "Jewish"1 male rivals away from economic and political opportunities and this included access to "honourable, Christian women". The case of a well-to-do and influential lawyer exemplifies that the judicial system was especially keen on enforcing orsegva ltas by handing out punitive measures for Jews who were in a position of power and therefore seemed more of a threat to the non-Jewish elite. The case study also shows that playing with the gendered notion of "honour" and with the resources still available to Jews in Horthy-era Hungary in the early 1940s, the outcome of cases could be swung. I here employ an emotional history approach and Michel Foucault's concept of the psychological-ethical "double" to indicate how emotions and readily available stereotypes were used by the actors of this particular case for various, often game-changing purposes.
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