Hungarian School Research Articles

Lifestyle of School Children: Representative Survey in Metropolitan Elementary Schools – Part One

Background/Aims: The prevalence of overweight and obesity among school children is increasing dramatically. Obesity is multifactorial and depends on lifestyle as well as genetic components. The purpose of the survey was to investigate the lifestyle of 7- to 14-year-old children attending elementary schools in Budapest. Methods: The research was questionnaire-based. Children were asked to answer questions about their leisure activities, physical exercise, nutritional, eating, and smoking habits. Results: Many children live a sedentary life and are dissatisfied with their body weight. One in 5 boys and 1 in 3 girls have been on a slimming diet at least once. About two-thirds of the children regularly consumed vitamin and/or mineral supplements and at the same time just over half of them knew how much fruit should be eaten daily. School children in the upper classes did not eat 5 times a day. More than 5% of the 11- to 14-year-old boys and more than 10% of the girls smoked regularly.Conclusions: According to our results, the unfavorable lifestyle of the great majority of Hungarian school children may have implications for their health during adulthood.

Dietary Habits of School Children: Representative Survey in Metropolitan Elementary Schools – Part Two

Background/Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate the eating habits and the nutrient intake of 11- to 14-year-old school children as part of a representative nutrition and health survey in primary schools in Budapest. Methods: A food frequency questionnaire of 875 school children, aged from 11 to 14 (449 boys and 426 girls), was recorded and evaluated. Energy and nutrient intake of 235 children (124 boys and 111 girls) was calculated in parallel by 3-day dietary record. Results: The average energy intake (MJ) was appropriate (boys: 10.40 ± 1.89; girls: 9.18 ± 1.50); protein and fat intake was somewhat higher than the Hungarian recommended dietary allowances. Sodium intake was alarmingly high. The intake of calcium and vitamin D was inadequate. The intakes of zinc, chromium, retinol, folate for both genders, and iron in the case of girls were insufficient. The daily consumption of milk and dairy products was deficient, that of vegetables and fresh fruits was rather low, while the frequency of consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, chips, sticks and fast foods was high. Conclusions: Nutrition intervention programs should be launched among Hungarian school children.

The perceived autonomy support scale for exercise settings (PASSES): Development, validity, and cross-cultural invariance in young people

Objective: The study aimed to develop a perceived autonomy support scale for exercise settings (PASSES) in young people. Design: Cross-sectional questionnaire survey. Methods: In Study 1,432 school pupils responded to an initial pool of perceived autonomy support items with physical education (PE) teachers as the source of support. The validity of the initial factor structure of the PASSES was evaluated using confirmatory factor analysis. In Study 2, three versions of the PASSES were developed measuring perceived autonomy support from three sources: PE teachers, parents, and peers. British ( N=210), Estonian ( N=268), and Hungarian ( N=235) school pupils completed each version. The proposed model of perceived autonomy support established in Study 1 was tested for structural invariance and mean differences across the three cultures. Results: In Study 1, the deletion of items contributing to model misspecification produced a final 12-item PASSES which exhibited acceptable fit with the data. The perceived autonomy support factor also demonstrated discriminant and convergent validity with regulation styles from the perceived locus of causality. In Study 2, the hypothesized model exhibited acceptable goodness-of-fit statistics in all samples and for all sources. The structure of the model was found to be invariant across the cultural groups for each source. Contrary to hypotheses, mean levels of perceived autonomy support from parents and peers were found to be higher in Estonian participants relative to their British and Hungarian counterparts. Conclusion: Results support the use of the PASSES as a valid measure of perceived autonomy support in exercise settings for three different sources in young people.

Emerging from the cocoon of Romani pride: The first graduates of the Gandhi Secondary School in Hungary

Despite recent educational reforms in Hungary, only 33% of Roma who enter primary school subsequently enroll in secondary school, and a mere 0.2% progress to higher education. To address this situation, in 1994 the Gandhi Secondary School opened its doors as the first college preparatory school for Roma in Europe. In 2000, the school graduated 18 of its original 56 students. Based on interviews conducted in 2004 with 10 of these students, two of the school's founders and two teachers, this paper documents the graduates' reflections on their experiences during high school and beyond. Data revealed that students found a second family at the school—indeed a protective cocoon—but did not always feel equipped to handle the racism they encountered later in both the workplace and university.

Cultural representations of minorities in Hungarian textbooks

This article reports research analyzing cultural representations of minorities in Hungarian elementary school textbooks currently used throughout the country. A convenient sample representing more than 75% of first and fourth grade reading books was collected from three academic and public libraries in Hungary. Using content analysis techniques, images and stories from first and fourth grade spelling, reading and literature books were analysed for the presence of ethnic or national minorities or cultural ‘others.’ Findings demonstrate that minorities receive almost no attention within Hungarian school textbooks, and when they are represented, it occurs in narrowly defined or stereotypical ways. We focus attention on the portrayal of Roma in the sample and compare our findings with published data indicating that Roma are the victims of prejudice and discrimination in everyday life. We argue that school textbooks be viewed as cultural objects that affect relations between the majority and minorities, rather than merely as a by-product of pre-existing social relations.

A preliminary evaluation of a health monitoring programme in Hungary

In 1998 a joint initiative of the Hungarian School of Public Health and the National Public Health Service created a network of sentinel stations based in primary care facilities in four Hungarian counties. The aim was to establish a system that will provide valid data on morbidity of selected diseases in Hungary. Based on standardized protocols, the participating centres have continuously reported data on the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, liver cirrhosis, and some malignant diseases, as well as supplying denominator data. The four counties represent both eastern and western parts of Hungary, reflecting the known geographical disparities in health. Each county office enrolled general practitioners maintaining representation in terms of both geography and distribution of settlement size. A total of 73 general practitioners agreed to participate, providing care for 15.6% (138,088 people) of the population in the counties. The population registered with the practices were representative in terms of age and sex of both the participating counties and the entire country. The prevalence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus and liver cirrhosis is high in each county but varies considerably, with higher levels in the western counties, especially among older age groups of both sexes. The establishment of sentinel stations to collect morbidity data is feasible and sustainable in Hungarian primary care. The data that have been generated provide a valid and comprehensive picture of important aspects of the Hungarian population's health, with important implications for health policy and health service planning. In regions where low prevalence rates of diseases and high mortality rates simultaneously exist special attention is required to explore the background of this caveat. Till the end of 1998 no program operated in Hungary engaged with non-communicable disease morbidity data collection, except some hospital-based registries, which failed to produce reliable information. The establishment of sentinel stations to collect morbidity data is feasible and sustainable in Hungarian primary care, the valid morbidity data can be built into the decision making process in health service planning. Regular training, quality control and feedback are important contributors to the success of the program. The prevalence of hypertension, diabetes mellitus and liver cirrhosis is high in each county but varies considerably, with higher levels in the western counties, especially among older age groups of both sexes. More research needed to determine the possible contribution of unknown morbidity and health service utilisation to the different prevalence values in the two parts of Hungary.

Adolescents' Health-Related Behaviors in the Light of Their Value Orientations

This study examines the relationship between adolescents' health behaviors and their value orientations. Data were collected among a sample of Hungarian urban high school students (n = 602, aged 14–19; 52.8% males and 47.2% females) in 2001. Factor analysis revealed fitness-oriented, health and social value oriented, and accomplishment/career oriented value factors. Health and social values were more common among girls, while accomplishment-oriented values were more common among boys. The fitness-oriented value orientation was related to physical activity and diet control, health and social value orientation showed significant association with diet control and the lack of smoking, alcohol and drug use, accomplishment oriented values were related to higher levels of substance use.

Custom and Law in Central Europe by Martyn s> Rady (review)

REVIEWS I39 victim was a brother of the accused. A rapidly rising population, a growing shortage of land to farm, and tensions occasioned by fraternalconflicts over the division of responsibilitieswithin the extended family that was characteristic of the region are seen as the main causes for the high level of fratricide, and other inter-familialviolence. Koskivirtaconcludes that 'when the growth in the number of farms and farming partners reaches its final bounds, the price of a family model that guaranteed a flexible division of resourceswas fratricide',which suggestsan element of calculationnot entirelysupportedby the evidence. Like Ylikangas,she places great importance on the fact that a conviction requiredthe concurringtestimoniesof two competent eyewitnesses or the confession of the accused; the unwillingnessof the accused to confess and the frequentlackof eyewitnessesmeant that manypatentlyguiltypersons escaped punishment. Weakcontrol and the lack of penal certaintyultimately led to crimes inspiredby self-interest;contractkillings,for example, of which a number are described in detail here. Koskivirtahas the uncommon ability of being able to blend theoreticalanalysisand narrative;her summariesof the cases brought to court are riveting reading, but they also buttress her arguments. The one major reservation would be that she does not really succeed in explainingsatisfactorilythe significantdifferencein homicide rates within eastern Finland. One would also like to have known more about possible religiousor ethnic tensions in mixed communities such as Ilomantsi, where the homicide rate per year per IOO,OOO inhabitantsduring the period under review was I2.8 (and reached a peak of I8.2 between I748 and I767). But this is in many ways a fascinatingstudy of a ruralsociety in crisis,which nicely complements the earlierwork of Ylikangason southern Ostrobothnia, that other area of Finlandin which homicide ratesrocketedin the 179os, and where the growthin the numbersof the landlesspopulationwas most rapid. School ofSlavonic andEastEuropean Studies DAVID KIRBY University College London Rady, Martyn (ed.). Custom andLawin Central Europe. With an Introductionby JAnosM. Bak. Centre for European Legal Studies Occasional Paper, 6. Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, 2003, vii + ii 6 pp. Notes. Select index. fio.oo (paperback). THEworks of legal historians help us to understand modern law and legal cultures. Today, however, the process of Europeanization seems to give an added legal significance to historical legal scholarship in East European countries. Studiesin comparativelaw are needed. We are now confrontedby the difficult problem of re-establishing a European legal culture. In this respect, Stephan Werboczy's Tripartitum Opus Juris Consuetudinarii InclytiRegni Hungariae is not merely a local work,but one of much greatersignificance. Furthermore, for persons interested in creating a national identity from modern history, a discussion of this work is certainly valuable. Present-day Hungarian school children already learn about the Tripartitum, including its role in later centuries. The practical influence of the Tripartitum lasted until I848, and it remained as a partial source of private law until the Second 140 SEER, 83, I, 2005 WorldWar.It gave the firstreasoned basisto the theory of 'the Holy Crown', which explainsthe identityof the Hungariannation, andwhich has been used on variouspolitical stagesup untiltoday. In contrast to the high quality of the Tripartitum as a readily available historical source, it is difficult to find detailed commentaries, especially updatedmulti-lingualones, on theworkitself.Therefore,thisvolumepromises to be eye-opening, a unique opportunity to study the Tripartitum and Hungarian legal culture. The volume is a collection of papers delivered at a conference held in Cambridge in April 2003 under the title, 'Werboczy, Custom and Hungarian Law'. As the preface shows, the conference formed part of a much larger, continuing project, which aims to publish an English language translationand critical edition of the Tripartitum. In addition to the introduction by Janos Bak, there are seven contributions in all. The contributors offer a wide variety of perspectives owing to their varied disciplinesand countriesof origin. Europeanlegal historiansmay be interestedin the followingquestion:does the Tripartitum follow the legal methods ofJustinian's Corpus IurisCivilis, which was regarded, next to Canon Law, as the most dominant authoritativelegal source over the European continent? Or rather, is it one of the products of regional common law, like the German Sachsenspiegel, the French Coutumes de Beauvaisis, or similartreatisesin England?In the firstworkshop in 200I, the symposiasts established that 'the traditional assessment of the "Romanist...

Hungarian School of Legal Philosophy

Hungarian School of Legal Philosophy

Wigner Centennial issue

The Wigner Centennial Conference was held in Pecs, Hungary, on 8–12 July 2002. Eugene Paul Wigner was born in Budapest on 17 November 1902 and left us on 1 January 1995 in Princeton, USA. Numerous other conferences and conference sessions were also held during 2002 to commemorate the centennial year of his birth, because so many wished to pay tribute to him. It would, of course, take a major international effort to review thoroughly all the contributions Wigner made in all branches of physics and for the cause of world peace. The purpose of the Wigner Centennial Conference was to enrich and enhance the research lines initiated by Wigner. The conference was particularly interested in assembling young researchers who will develop and expand those research lines in the future. Indeed, there were many papers of current interest, including symmetry problems in quantum mechanics and quantum field theory, group theoretical issues, foundations of quantum mechanics, nuclear physics, chemical physics, the phase-space formulation of quantum mechanics, as well as quantum computing, information and entanglement problems. In 1932 Wigner published a seminal paper entitled 'On the quantum correction for thermodynamic equations' (Phys. Rev. 40 749--759) in which he introduced a fundamental tool for quantum mechanics known these days as the Wigner function. The Wigner function has a long history, but began to gain its major strength in quantum optics during the 1970s. Since then, it has become the primary scientific language for squeezed states of light dealing with multi-photon coherent states. The Wigner function is also the basic language for transition from classical to quantum mechanics through phase-space. It therefore plays a major role in detecting quantum effects in processes routinely regarded as classical. Indeed, most optical instruments have been based on classical optics; it is, however, a great challenge to find quantum effects in those devices. This itself is an important subject. Wigner initially formulated the Wigner function to understand thermodynamic effects in physical systems, and thus it plays an important role in studying entropy in measurement processes, statistical mechanics and chemical physics. Physicists do not seem to fully appreciate the fact that Wigner functions can be used for the purpose of group representations. For instance, the single-mode and two-mode squeezed states are isomorphic to the Lorentz groups O(2,1) and O(3,2), respectively. This can be done very cleanly within the framework of the Wigner phase-space approach. By combining two of Wigner's main research areas, namely group theory and the Wigner function, we can construct a very rich field of physics. This is a future possibility for today's young physicists. Turning to computing, a man or woman is born with ten fingers, which constitute a natural computer based on decimal numbers. Indeed, the Chinese developed an abacus for dealing with decimal numbers. Slide rules perform additions, but they can do multiplications in the logarithmic scale. In the 1940s, another Hungarian scientist named John von Neumann observed that vacuum tubes could perform 'yes or no' logic. His observation led to the computer age in which we live. It is interesting to note that both Wigner and von Neumann came from the same high school in Hungary, the Budapest Evangelikus Gimnazium. Likewise, Eugene Wigner began to worry about the language that atoms speak even before the present form of quantum mechanics was formulated. He published in 1929 a book entitled 'Group Theory and its Applications to Quantum Mechanics of Atomic Spectra'. This is, in fact, the first book on quantum computing. Physicists do not yet seem to appreciate this aspect of Wigner's contribution, but eventually they will. If we are seriously interested in building quantum computers, we should use atoms. We should then develop mathematical algorithms to use group theory of atomic spectra for numerical computation. This is what Wigner left to us as a homework. The Wigner Centennial Conference was dedicated to Wigner's future rather than to his past. Indeed, we are very happy to note that many young physicists presented their new research results at this conference. We regret that this special issue cannot include all the subjects covered at the Conference. We are, however, very fortunate to have so many excellent papers on Wigner functions, quantum optics and quantum information, as well as quantum computing. The special issue is not meant to be the conference proceedings. The papers included here have been refereed according to the standards of Journal of Optics B: Quantum and Semiclassical Optics and publication was not restricted to the participants of the Conference. This is indeed a special issue dedicated to the above-mentioned subjects.

Low-achieving (learning disabled) pupils in year 2 of the primary school in Hungary

We selected 60 low-achieving children from a sample of 263 pupils in Year 2 of the primary school in order to analyse the problems of learning disabilities. We explored two questions: whether teachers evaluate the pupils' school performances correctly; and what kind of relationship exists between the low-achieving pupils' cognitive abilities and their school performance. Methods used were questionnaires, pedagogical tests and traditional psychological tests. We obtained the following results: the teachers generally evaluate the pupils' school performance fairly well, but they are inclined to assume a close correlation between the achievements in different subjects, and the teachers' knowledge of the low-achieving children is more reliable regarding the group of pupils as a whole rather than each pupil individually; and the low-achieving pupils' cognitive learning abilities prove to be significantly weaker than their general intellectual abilities.

Benjamin Rajeczky and Polish Musicology

Benjamin Rajeczky very much influenced the famous Hungarian school of ethnomusicology. He was very successful in organizing international studies of European folk traditions, too. In Poland he was especially interested in laments (from 1962). He took part in the field work. Some examples of Polish laments were published in 1971 (Bielawski). Rajeczky took part in the International Congress "Musica Antiqua Europae Orientalis" in Bydgoszcz (1966). The classical themes ant methods of the Hungarian musicological school are also continued in Poland. International relations become so frequent that the ideas could freely cross national borders.

A cross-cultural study of fictional and non-fictional text understanding

It is often assumed that readers of texts vary in their responses, even if they come from the same cultural background, depending upon their personal assumptions and knowledge about the kind of text they are reading. In this paper we investigate how readers from three different language groups responded to (translations of) the same textual extracts. We focus on two questions. Do readers respond differently to the same textual extract depending on what text-type they think it is, and does the response vary much from one language/cultural group to another? Our study involves English, Hungarian and German senior secondary school students. They were asked to read and comment on three short extracts from three different text-types (novel, newspaper report and autobiography) according to different text-type assumptions. Although there were some palpable differences in response to the texts, both within and among the samples, there were also considerable similarities. Moreover, there was no discernible effect on reading outcomes of declared text-type.

School Dramas, or Schoolbooks in Dialogues? Schola Ludus by Comenius and the Hungarian Calvinist School Dramas in the 18th Century*

“Schola Ludus” by Comenius has always been at the periphery of research. It has never been so important as the other works and the pedagogic and philosophic system of Comenius, because it is just a school drama collection. When Protestant school dramas are studied, “Schola Ludus” is considered to be only a textbook in dialogues, so it was only an item in the data base of the Protestant school dramas. Most experts think these dramas very important in the national drama tradition, but nobody has compared the dramas of “Schola Ludus” to the Hungarian or Czech Protestant school dramas. School performances were banned in Calvinist schools in the 17th century, so Calvinist school theatre flourished only around and after the mid 18 th century. The aims of these dramas were the same as those of “Schola Ludus”: educating and teaching; the sources were the same, too: the schoolbooks. This paper shows some examples how the textbooks were used by playwrights from “Schola Ludus” up to the end of Hungarian Calvinist school drama tradition, i. e. up to the 18th century. There are five types of Calvinist dramas in Hungary: 1. Dramas about school life; 2. “Certamens” of different trades; 3. Themes from the Bible; 4. “Danse macabres” and other dramas about Death; 5. Themes from Greek and Latin mythology. The first and the second type can be found in “Schola Ludus”, too, but Comenius's opinion was disapproving of types 3., 4. and 5. According to him the aims of these dramas are only the entertainment and they only waste the pupils’ and audiences’ time. But there are a lot of direct and indirect contacts between these texts and Comenius's pedagogy, too. Comenius wanted to show the whole World in his dramas ‐but not for the audience, because his theatre was for the pupils. In the 18 th century authors realised that dramas were not only for the students, they are for the audience, too, so one can see some changes in these 18 th century dramas, e.g. new, comic figures and scenes appeared in them. Drama was not apart of poetry in the 17‐18 th century, like lyric and epic, it was just a mode of messages (most schoolbooks were written in dialogue form in this period). From this point of view “Schola Ludus” and 18th century dramas are only textbooks in dialogues. The difference is the performance between textbook and drama, so we can say that “Schola Ludus” and the 18th century texts are dramas! Many Hungarian and European literary‐historians seem to forget, that school dramas were acted by students in schools, so we cannot study these dramas without the pedagogic background, school dramas are an unexploited source of educational research. This article gives some useful data for this aspect. * This article was sponsored by Vox Provinciae Fundation (Miskolc, Hungary) and Pro Renovanda Cultura Hungariae Fundation (Students for sciences) (Budapest, Hungary).

Geography from a Student Perspective: A Hungarian Case Study

This study describes the results of research carried out amongst Hungarian students in 1998. The survey on which the study has been based examined 900 students who had already finished their studies in geography and were regarded as users of the geography knowledge gained. The objectives of the research were to show what picture was formed in the students' mind about geography, where they position this subject and the knowledge presented to them in the system of education, and how they can exploit this knowledge whilst studying other subjects. Also, the study aimed to reveal what students think about the potential use of the knowledge they gained in geography in the different areas of out-of-school, everyday life. The results of the research indicated that out of the subjects taught in the Hungarian school curriculum history seems to be most closely related to geography. Another obvious conclusion from the answers is that geographical knowledge can be applied very well in several areas of everyday life. Regarding the practical usability, the topographic knowledge and cartographic skills were considered to be most important. The survey also highlighted the topics that should be given more attention to in school, such as analysing the current social and economic processes. The results of the research can be exploited by foreign experts as well as by the international community, due to its value in contributing to further development of geography teaching.

200 years of teaching mathematics at the Technical University of Budapest

A brief history of mathematical education at the Technical University of Budapest is given. The Institutum Geometrico‐Hydrotechnicum—the predecessor of the University—was established in 1782. It gradually developed into the Technical University (established in 1871) with the right of issuing diplomas. Since that time outstanding mathematicians like Hunyadi, König, Kürschák and Rados have contributed to the high standard of mathematical education at the Technical University. Their scientific and teaching activity affected mathematical life in the whole country and laid the foundation of the internationally recognized mathematical school in Hungary. By 1990, the number of mathematicians in the six mathematics departments had reached nearly 100. Some critical views on the mathematical education at the Technical University are also quoted, e.g. an engineer professor claimed in his polemical essay in 1901 that the mathematical education at the Technical University was too abstract and did not meet the demands of the technical sciences. Another expert expressed the view that mathematics was not the only approach to understanding physics and mechanics. This type of discussion has been repeated periodically ever since.

The Reverse Effect of an Attempt to Shape Reader Awareness

Abstract In a previous study, Marton et al. (1992) asked Hungarian and Swedish secondary school students to read Franz Kafka's parable Before the Law several times. Rereading the text several times did not in itself improve or alter the students’ understanding of it. We found, however, that a more complex and advanced way of understanding the text was highly correlated with a certain way of reading; that is, in the use of a reflective variation. In order to determine whether it is possible to elicit reflective variation in readers and affect their awareness of alternative ways of understanding the parable, by giving explicit instructions, we conducted a new experiment in Sweden. The procedure for this experiment was designed with the aim of eliciting a variational reading and a more advanced understanding of the text. This procedure, however, created a strong reverse effect. Paradoxically, the variation in the readers’ understanding of Kafka's parable was dramatically reduced. The attempt to encourage rea...

Narrative Competence: Cross-Cultural Comparisons

Abstract In a series of cross-cultural studies of narratives by children and adolescents, we examined thematic variations as well as cohesive devices. Our subjects ranged from 5 to 15 years of age. Our initial study included Black, Hispanic, and Native-American participants. We used a story-retelling task for comparative analysis. We found that children between ages 5 and 8 substantively increased the quantity and accuracy of their retold narratives. We also found thematic differ-ences among stories by children from the different speech communities, which suggested coherent cultural schemas specific to each ethnic group. Native-Amer-ican students, who reconstructed stories on the basis of pictorial cues, also revealed strong cultural and tribal variations in their narratives. In follow-up studies, we examined the relationship between narrative compe-tence and narrative cohesion. Our subjects (ranging in age from 8 to 11) were drawn from public school groups of English-speaking American students and Hungarian public school students. In the retold stories of these two groups, we found that the Hungarian students demonstrated a more artful storytelling style, employing a greater variety of cohesive devices and establishing a more coherent narrative experience than did the American students. (Linguistics, Education)

Skills in art criticism of Hungarian elementary school leavers in the 1980s

Skills in art criticism of Hungarian elementary school leavers in the 1980s

Understanding Short Stories: An American-Hungarian Cross-Cultural Study

This article presents a cross-cultural study about the relationship between story understanding, memory, and attitude towards the contents of a story. An American and a Hungarian short story dealing with the social class versus repression dimension were used. Thirty-four American freshmen (average age 18.5) and forty-eight Hungarian secondary school students (average 17.5) took part in the study. Half of each population read one, the second half the other story, in three-three segments. Following the reading of a segment, the subjects reported their understanding, answering some questions. They were asked to recognize some sentences in a set of original and false, aggressive, cooperative, evasive versions on 7 seven-point scales; and judged the content of the sentences from the points of view of refusal, activity, aggressivity, security, oppression, strength, and anxiety on 5-point scales. There were significant cross-cultural differences between the two populations in the frequency of the response-items of understanding and the recognition of sentences and in the content of the response-categories of understanding and the sensitivity towards aggressivity, oppression and anxiety. The results are discussed in terms of different issues of the social role of literature and literary competence on the one hand, and as those of some culture-dependent themes that influence literary understanding on the other hand.