IN:<\/strong>\u00a0Partit\u00fara Irodalomtudom\u00e1nyi foly\u00f3irat, Volume: IX. Issue 2, 2014, p. 39-50., ISSN 1336-7307<\/p>\n DOI:\u00a0<\/strong>10.17846\/PA.2014.9.2.39-50<\/span><\/p>\n Literary societies formed in Hungary in the 19th century played a very important\u00a0role in organizing and stimulating (partly simulating) literary life in Hungary. Among their functions there was the promotion of publications, forming the\u00a0canon through prizes and awards, vitalization of critical life, creating space for\u00a0literary discussions. For the beginning of the 20th century, however, most of\u00a0these functions were taken over by a normalizing development of the literary\u00a0field (a market, a public sphere, an autonomous structure of literary magazines\u00a0and publication, etc.) – so that the new generation of the actors did not feel it\u00a0neither necessary nor comfortable to take part in the older organizations.\u00a0Moreover, these societies \u00a0became more and more conservative, closed and\u00a0hostile towards the modern literatures, and also had close ties with politics. The\u00a0study gives a sketch of this phenomenon, trying to explore the main motives and\u00a0steps of the parties involved.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n