The boys from Paulstrasse

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Monument to “The Boys from Paul Street” in Práter utca, Budapest

The Boys from Paul Street ( A Pál utcai fiúk ) is a Hungarian novel by Ferenc Molnár for young people , published in 1906 and translated into many languages. The book is compulsory reading in Hungarian primary schools and is one of the recommended works and the like. a. in Poland, Italy, Japan and Brazil.

action

The action takes place at the end of the 19th century (in the time of Molnár's own youth). It's about the fight between two groups of children (the "Gang der Paulstraße" and the "Gang der Rothemden" - Vörösingesek ) over a vacant lot ( Grund ). This is suitable for a fortress made of piles of wood from the local sawmill and a playground for a ball game, so the rivalry between the groups arose. The ground is located in Józsefváros , Budapest , on the corner of Pál utca (Paulstrasse) and Mária utca (Mariastrasse). Another important location is the Füvészkert , a botanical garden behind the Hungarian Natural Science Museum.

The most important people are Ernő Nemecsek , János Boka , Feri Áts , Csónakos , the Pásztor brothers and Geréb . The main character Nemecsek lives with his family in Rákos utca (today Hőgyes Endre utca) in a poor rented apartment. He is a weak, small, often mocked boy, who is also a member of the so-called " Kittverein " ( gittegylet ), whose main activity consists of chewing putty and was founded by some boys from the Paulstrasse gang. The putty , which comes from newly cemented window panes, is diligently chewed and guarded by the members of the "association" so that it stays soft. This term is used in today's everyday Hungarian language for dubious, self-serving groups.

However, many underestimate Nemecsek. In the course of the novel, he is believed to be a traitor because of a misunderstanding of the Kittverein - his name is therefore entered in the club book with lowercase letters. In reality he is a hero of the reason , which will later be gradually cleared up. He is the only "soldier" without rank in the group, the sole shooter in the gang and the last in line. While he, Boka and Csónakos go on a reconnaissance mission against the red shirts in the Füvészkert, he falls into the cold pond of the botanical garden. He shows his courage to the other Paulstraßers and returns twice to the Füvészkert. Nemecsek finally finds out that his comrade from Paulstrasse, Geréb, is the real traitor in the youth gang. He helped Feri Áts, the leader of the red shirts, to steal an earlier flag from Paulstrasse. He was thrown into cold water again by the members (the Pásztor brothers) of the other gang of boys, but Feri Áts leaves the weak but very brave Nemecsek and leaves the garden without helping him.

Nemecsek, who is now suffering from severe pneumonia from his last visit to the botanical garden , sneaks out of bed with a high fever to inform Boka about Geréb's betrayal. He then forged a war plan against the threatened secret attack by the Vörösingesek . After the great battle with victory Paul Street between the armed, hearty boy groups from elementary and shortly before his death due to the disease, Nemecsek is from Kittverein rehabilitated and even promoted to captain for his Heldtat by his comrades Paul Street.

Some other German expressions that were used at that time are still known in today's Hungarian language through this book. For example, the word `` aufstand '' (the stronger children bully the weaker ones) or the word `` Grund '' in the meaning of football field .

Film adaptations

various

  • The name Pál Utcai Fiúk (PUF) was an alternative rock group in Hungary in the first half of the 1990s.
  • In 2007, a memorial to “The Boys from Paul Street” was erected in Práter utca (in a nearby street in Józsefváros , Budapest), which represents the moment of entry .
  • In 2019 Ernő Nemecsek was given his own memorial in the Füvészkert, in which he hid in the film adaptation from 1969 while Boka and Csónakos from the Red Shirts were chasing him

Web links