Heathen Master Filcsik

Downloads: Under 100
Pages: 9

Read PDF online Download Save

About this book

An embroidered fur cloak holds an extraordinary place in the life of Stephen Filcsik, a village bootmaker whose pride survives the garment's steady decay. Kálmán Mikszáth's short story moves through Hungarian village life, where gossip, family quarrels and the favors of county officials shape everyday fortunes. Filcsik's daughter Therese refuses the marriage he chooses for her and leaves with a young County Justice. Her later appeals for forgiveness meet the same stubborn resistance that defines her father's dealings with his neighbors.

The cloak's elaborate birds, flowers and city scene give this family conflict a vivid material focus. Around it, the narrator mixes sharp observations about local influence with sly humor and sympathy for Therese's longing for home. Readers interested in brief fiction can find a compact study of wounded family bonds, social standing and the strange power an ordinary possession can acquire.