The Visual Representation of the Ottoman Turks in Hungarian High School History Textbooks (Between 1879-1990)

Abstract

Having greatly defined most of the 16th and 17th centuries, the Ottoman rule in Hungary occupies a quite distinguished place in Hungarian collective memory. It is due to the fact that, by being narrated at length in high school history textbooks, it is passed down from generation to generation by means of official education. Studies in the field of imagology aim at shedding light on the prejudice and stereotypes of one nation toward another with the research of written texts. However, by not giving enough attention to illustrations, it tends to overlook certain elements of importance. Within the scope of this work, after having determined the factors that should be born in mind while studying textbook illustrations, a research was carried out. It focused on the pictures featured in the context of the 16–17th centuries in high school history textbooks that were in use in Hungary between 1879 and 1990. Within this frame, the symbols with which Ottoman Turks are represented and the emotions stirred up by the scenes in which they were portrayed have been examined in detail. Thus the visual components of the image of the Ottoman Turks in Hungarian collective memory have been established and evaluated. By doing so, it has been attempted to formulate a more complete and demonstrative interpretation of the Ottoman Turkish image adopted by the Hungarians.