Szép, Erős, Egészséges. Szabadidő és testkultúra Budapesten a 20. század első felében
Beautiful, Strong, Healthy. Leisure time and body culture in Budapest in the first half of the 20th century

Summary/Abstract: The transformation of the human body pervaded Hungarian society after 1st World War, and had consequences on several levels (e.g. health, beauty and sport). Active knowledge of the human body occupied an increasingly central role in public discussions. On the other hand, modernity has given primacy of new social practices (such as vegetarianism, nudism and a wide range of sports) based on the forming urban culture. My inquiry revolves around changing attitudes to the human body in Hungarian society. during the pre-war years: the impact of medicalization, the modern social space of leisure, the role of „fashioning” and „hardening” the body in the civilizing process of making mass society out of migrant and working populations and various nationalities. What did it mean to have the opportunity to influence health and illness, beauty and fitness? What values have emerged in society? Which of these transformations have generated new individual strategies and which one contributed to overall societal patterns? These are the questions I address. The article provides further fragments of the history of everyday life and that of modern physical existence in Hungary.

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