György Konrád

Against his will, György Konrád found himself, throughout his life, standing at the crossroads of defining moments in European history. He grew up in a Jewish-Hungarian family and narrowly escaped deportation to Auschwitz at the age of eleven by fleeing his village and going into hiding in Budapest. In 1956 he witnessed the Soviet Union brutally crushing the Hungarian uprising.

More than a decade later, he made his literary debut with The Case Worker, a novel about a social worker and his daily activities, which brought him his first international recognition. Under communism, Konrád became known as a dissident; in 1979 he was arrested following his sociological study The Intellectuals on the Road to Class Power. His arrest sparked worldwide protests. Until 1988 — just one year before the political changes in his country — his work remained banned in Hungary.

In 1990, Konrád was elected president of International PEN, the writers’ organisation dedicated to promoting international literary cooperation and defending freedom of expression. He received numerous awards for his body of work, including the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade and the prestigious Charlemagne Prize.

Shortly before his appearance at BorderKitchen, his essay collection Swinging Time is published. In it, Konrád reflects on the impact of Hungarian history on his own life. He analyses his memories while also turning to lighter subjects, such as his many travels, everyday life in Budapest, and his love of literature.

György Konrád will be interviewed in English by Wim Brands (VPRO).

Note: change of location, not the usual Weimarstraat as previously announced.
New venue: Pulchri Studio, Lange Voorhout 15, The Hague.
Start time: 8:00 PM. Doors open: 7:30 PM.

“Konrád possesses the rare gift of ultimately giving a compelling structure to seemingly incidental events, observations, and reflections.” – NRC Handelsblad