Seven years with Orion

Abstract

The collection managed by the Voices of the 20th Century Archive and Research Group offers unique opportunities for social researchers. Due to the nature of the march of time, a seemingly endless series of one-time, unrepeatable and irreclaimable moments awaits the masses of researchers so that they take the old research with a new approach and a fresh perspective. The collection does not only provide a chance to quote and refer to the research materials that have remained from the 20th century. We can plan to re-analyze or even to continue or repeat them. Researchers maneuvering through the restrictions of state socialism have left us a legacy that deserves special attention. I believe that these researchers deserve attention looking back even from the 21st century, and that their research should form the basis of today’s research. As a result of the change of regime, social environment and everyday life have changed significantly. Countless aspects of the transformation affecting the whole of people’s lifestyle have remained unexplored to this day, although studying and processing them would be urgently needed. The Orion research, commissioned by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and led by Judit H. Sas, is one of the treasures of the archive which offers sources for researchers dedicated to the field of the life of workers. In my study, I give an account of my most important personal practical experiences, from the sorting and digitization of original source materials written by typewriter to the partial repetition of research.