Faggot meaning a bundle of sticks of course. This Mihály Munkácsy painting is among the most reproduced paintings in Hungary and can be found in many homes and state buildings. The original title - Rőzsehordo nő - literally translates to Woman Carrying Faggot.
I am no fan of the language police, but I wish the fine people who translate and print the titles of artworks and books from other languages would take a moment to consider the possible negative connotations of certain words in English - not in an effort to defend certain politically correct sensitivities, but rather to avoid tarnishing a work of art with modern, offensive slang meanings. I mean, just imagine what the average, unsophisticated modern person pictures in their minds when they hear the English title of this painting. On second thought, perhaps it's best not to imagine that at all.
In any event, this iconic painting ranks among Munkácsy's best known works. I am rather fond of it myself. What I admire about the depiction of this peasant woman carrying her bundle of sticks is Munkácsy's seeming refusal to over-romanticize. I have a soft spot in my heart for paintings depicting agrarian and pastoral scenes; however, overtly idealistic depictions of peasants, shepherds, and rural life tend to leave me cold. Luckily, Munkácsy does not indulge in such idealism in this painting. The woman he paints here is strong and healthy, but the expression on her face as she sits resting in the forest reveals a life of hard work and toil. It is not an expression of defeat or suffering, but rather of quiet contemplation during a moment of reprieve from the seemingly endless flow of physical labor marking her life.
I am no fan of the language police, but I wish the fine people who translate and print the titles of artworks and books from other languages would take a moment to consider the possible negative connotations of certain words in English - not in an effort to defend certain politically correct sensitivities, but rather to avoid tarnishing a work of art with modern, offensive slang meanings. I mean, just imagine what the average, unsophisticated modern person pictures in their minds when they hear the English title of this painting. On second thought, perhaps it's best not to imagine that at all.
In any event, this iconic painting ranks among Munkácsy's best known works. I am rather fond of it myself. What I admire about the depiction of this peasant woman carrying her bundle of sticks is Munkácsy's seeming refusal to over-romanticize. I have a soft spot in my heart for paintings depicting agrarian and pastoral scenes; however, overtly idealistic depictions of peasants, shepherds, and rural life tend to leave me cold. Luckily, Munkácsy does not indulge in such idealism in this painting. The woman he paints here is strong and healthy, but the expression on her face as she sits resting in the forest reveals a life of hard work and toil. It is not an expression of defeat or suffering, but rather of quiet contemplation during a moment of reprieve from the seemingly endless flow of physical labor marking her life.
Rőzsehordó nő (Translated as Woman Carrying Faggot) . Mihály Munkácsy - 1873
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