Kurt W. Treptow, ed.. Romania and Western Civilization / Romania si civilizatia occidentala. Iasi: Center for Romanian Studies, 1997. 478 pp. $45.00, cloth, ISBN 978-973-98091-5-3.
Reviewed by Gudrun Staedel-Schneider
Published on HABSBURG (August, 1998)
Romania and Western Civilization employs to clarify some of the--certainly not easy--aspects one of the perennial themes in Romanian histori‐ of this theme, which ought to be the foremost task ography. Usually the concept of "western civiliza‐ for the organizer of a conference and editor of its tion" goes unquestioned and its complexity is ig‐ papers. Instead, in good Romanian tradition, he nored. This also applies to the conference with immediately turns the question of the bi-direc‐ this title organized in 1996 by the Center for Ro‐ tional relationship between Romania and West‐ manian Studies in Iasi. ern civilization into a mono-directional eulogy of The central questions have hardly been the Romanian contributions to Western civiliza‐ raised in the papers. Only Paul Michelson raises tion, referring to the "increasing importance to the importance of the following issue for the Ro‐ bring to light those aspects of Romanian history manians at the beginning of his paper: "The ques‐ and culture that illustrate the historic ties of the tion posed for us by this conference is a variant of Romanians with Western civilization." Only a few an age-old Romanian cultural problem, the preoc‐ lines later, these historic ties are transformed into cupation (almost a mania or complex) of Romani‐ "the role and importance of Romanian history ans with the process of their historical becoming. and culture in European and American history 'Who are we?' 'Where did we come from?' 'Where and civilization." are we going?' have been constant themes in Ro‐ In view of the above, one is quite tempted to manian intellectual discourse" (p. 11). Michelson's review the second international conference itself, defnition of Western Civilization as the "Classical/ held by the Center for Romanian Studies in Iasi in Judeo-Christian/Modern mainstream of civiliza‐ June 1996, rather than a compilation of the con‐ tion" (p. 11), however, is a working defnition at ference papers. The title of the conference is nice‐ best. In the editor's foreword, such refections are ly illustrated on the cover of the book by Bran‐ completely missing. Treptow limits himself to a cusi's famous statue The Kiss. The conference ran one-page text instead of grasping the opportunity over three days and included, according to the H-Net Reviews book, twenty-seven papers--a sort of marathon for peace conferences in Paris after the two world the participants. Thirteen papers were presented wars, based on a huge amount of archival materi‐ in English, fourteen in Romanian, promising a al but without any analysis (pp. 353-82). In seven‐ balanced approach to the central question. A look teen pages, he recounts the 1920 peace conference at the home institutions of the participants makes without even summarizing this section at its end. this balance disappear: the conference was more The description of the 1946 peace conference fol‐ of a discussion forum for researchers from the lows on the next thirteen pages, giving details on United States (twelve) and Iasi (nine), Bucharest the events leading up to World War II and its con‐ (three) and Chisinau (two). The European per‐ sequences. The expectation from the title of the spective was left to one participant from Paris. paper, a comparison of Romania's position and Unfortunately the book does not convey the development of policy 1920 and 1946, is not ful‐ original conference program; panel titles or sec‐ flled as Dobrinescu leaves the conclusions to the tions are not mentioned. With a look at the table reader's imagination. of contents the reader soon becomes lost trying to In his paper, Radu Florescu presents the sort out what belongs together thematically. I memoirs of his father, Radu A. Florescu, who be‐ have grouped the papers into the following hypo‐ came a career diplomat under Nicolae Titulescu thetical sections for the purpose of this review: (pp. 407-18). Florescu concentrates on his father's 1. Romania after World War I (eight papers) 2. years in the U.S. in 1934-36 when he was in fact Queen Marie's visit to North America 1926 (two head of the mission due to the frequent absence papers) 3. Romanian history in Western context of the Romanian Minister Carol Davila. In his (four papers) 4. Romanian cultural highlights memoirs, Florescu comments on the develop‐ (four papers) 5. Romanians and their position in ments in Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, and he European Art and Literature (fve papers) 6. Ro‐ gives insights in the world of the Romanian-Amer‐ manians and Western Culture (four papers) ican community and its debate with the Hungari‐ ans, but in general he focuses more on cultural The frst section listed above is a pell-mell of than political aspects. papers: Dobrinescu's thirty-page article on Roma‐ nia at the Paris Peace Conferences 1919-20 and The papers about Queen Marie's visit to 1946-47 is followed by a text on a secret service Northern America again demonstrate an ap‐ document from 1941 on foreign capital in Roma‐ proach well known to scholars of Romanian stud‐ nia (Veaceslav Stavila). We are introduced to a Ro‐ ies: detailed presentations of collected material manian activist, Marcu Breza, in London during with hardly any refection on it. Adrian-Silvan World War II (Ernest Latham), having then to go Ionescu contributes a mere chronological account back to the memoirs of a Romanian diplomat dur‐ of the journey (pp. 295-330), while Emma Porfre‐ ing the Roosevelt era (Radu Florescu). Dumitru anu is slightly more critical regarding intentions Sandu's text on German emigration from Roma‐ and reactions in 1926 (pp. 339-352). In the two pa‐ nia between 1940 and 1944 is followed by pers, some of the well-known photos of the Roma‐ Emanuel Antoche's paper on Charles de Gaulle. nian Queen in the U.S. and Canada are repro‐ Gheorghe Onisoru returns to the U.S. in his paper duced. on "The State Department and the Royal Strike" The papers of the third section, "Romanian while C. Joan Heifner discusses "Romania as a history in Western context," are not very inspir‐ World Power." ing. They ofer new details rather than new views. Valeriu Dobrinescu gives a typically detailed Olga Tudorica Impey's paper on "Kogalniceanu Romanian account of the development at the two and Spain" (pp. 233-50) is based on Kogalniceanu's
2 H-Net Reviews manuscript "Notes sur L'Espagne" about his stay The ffth section, "Romanians and their posi‐ in Spain 1846/47. According to her interpretation tion in European art and literature," is the most Kogalniceanu compared Romania (using this interesting part of the book. This is due to the ex‐ name for Wallachia and Moldavia ten years be‐ cellent article by Michael Impey, "The Receptivity fore their unifcation) and Spain because of their of Romanian Literature at Home and Abroad: Tra‐ similarities: both countries have oriental tradi‐ dition, Innovation, and the Avantgarde" (pp. tions, but only Spain is accepted as part of the 101-18). This well-structured and thoughtful pa‐ Western world (p. 247). Tudorica Impey considers per provides insights into the position of Romani‐ this manuscript a milestone of European political an and Romanian-born writers of dadaism and literature and of the awakening of a Romanian surrealism within the context of European litera‐ national identity: "The Romanian Writer was not ture. Tristan Tzara and Eugen Ionescu opened the in search for himself, his quest in Spain was for path for the new trends of surrealism and absurd his own country. "Notes sur L'Espagne" becomes, theater, but, according to Impey, neither artist therefore, a quest for Romanian national identity was accepted in the Romania of World War I be‐ in the context of European civilization" (p. 247). cause of the "poorly ventilated cultural atmos‐ Tudorica Impey argues that Kogalniceanu wrote phere in Bucharest" (p. 103). Impey concludes that more than half of his text in the Latin alphabet, "those Romanian writers who succeeded in thus "expressing the search for ethnic and cultur‐ achieving some measure of recognition abroad al identity for the Romanian principalities" (p. were essentially cosmopolitan in spirit, whether 237). Such an identity is at best a construction to they were Jews or Germans born in Romania" (p. be applied, but certainly not for which one is 117). Brancusi was an artist (although no writer) searching. of genius, but not because he was Romanian by The fourth section, "Romanian cultural high‐ birth. lights," seems to be quite incoherent as well. Cen‐ In the same section, one can compare Impey's tral papers are those of Nicholas Nagy-Talavera views on Tristan Tzara directly with the article by (pp. 159-63) and Anatol Petrencu (pp. 164-68), on Raluca Mihaela Dub (pp. 85-92) focusing more on historians of the Romanians. Nagy-Talavera deliv‐ Tzara's education as a student of Radulescu- ered an uninspired paper of a mere four pages on Motru. Her thorough comparison of the Dada Nicolae Iorga, without citing any sources and lit‐ manifestos with Nietzsche's Zarathustra points to erature. According to Nagy-Talavera, Iorga argued the philosophical background, but her conclusion that he wanted to unify the Romanian nation spoils the good impression. Therein she argues which "wanted" to belong to the West (p. 160). that the cultural context of Bucharest at that time Here, the historian has the task of doing more was a special one within Europe due to the fact with this argument than just reproducing it with‐ that it was in Romania that Nietzsche was pre‐ out interpretation. In reading this text, one gets sented to a European audience for the frst time the impression that the author lost the historian's and that two predominant fgures of the avant‐ necessary critical distance to his research topic. In garde (Tzara and Marcel Iancu) were Romanians contrast to Nagy-Talavera, Anatol Petrencu ofers (p. 92). frst insights into his newly begun research on Adam Sorkin continues his restless work of Vlad Georgescu and his political analysis. His pa‐ translating contemporary Romanian poetry into per is also rather short but concise and clear in its English, thereby opening a path to international argument. acceptance of the poets. His thirteen-page text on "Postmodernism in Romanian Poetry: The 'Abnor‐
3 H-Net Reviews mally Normal'" (pp. 119-31) is followed by "A Mini- es of these libraries are about the only positive as‐ Anthology of Postmodern Romanian Poetry" (pp. pect of this listing. A favorite Romanian research 132-52) with translations by Sorkin, sometimes in subject is Romanian students studying abroad be‐ cooperation with the poet her-/himself. Michael fore World War I. Stela Maries (pp. 33-64) presents Impey considers the quality of a translation of po‐ her results on Romanian students in Berlin, etry as essential in our times as "a bad or indifer‐ Leipzig, and Munich, proving that Romanians had ent translation will often do irreparable damage contacts with the Western world. The main issue to a writer's reputation, damage that may then re‐ is their number, not studies or later career. Charts fect adversely on the reception of other writers with names, addresses in Berlin, disciplines, etc. from the same country" (p. 104). Adam Sorkin are not enough as long as they do not give details tries his best to protect poets of today from the on later positions of these students back in Roma‐ fate of Tudor Arghezi, who lost any chance of win‐ nia. Irina Andone closes this section with the in‐ ning the Noble Price for Literature because of bad evitable paper on Mihai Eminescu, (pp. 65-72) in translations. this case Eminescu and his views of Romanian Arriving now at the fnal section, "Romanians culture. Basing her research on his work as a jour‐ and Western Culture," the reader thinks that it nalist, she concludes that "Eminescu was a poet was well to put Paul Michelson's paper "Romani‐ and a journalist" (p. 65) and that "There was no ans and the West" (pp. 11-24) at the beginning of gap in his personality" (p. 66). She gives long quo‐ the book, whether or not it was also the opening tations, but never questions Eminescu's positions. paper of the conference. Michelson gives a good Pretensions of Romanian superiority are a and well-documented introduction to what Roma‐ burden on the book; quite often, the political as‐ nians wrote about during their visits to Western pect of the central question blocks new approach‐ countries. The identity problem started only with es to old and new questions. As mentioned at the the travelers of the nineteenth century who initi‐ beginning, the question of Romania's belonging to ated an imitation of what was considered Western the Western world has a long tradition. This does culture. The twentieth century brought Romanian not exempt researchers from questioning, at least introversion. The interwar period saw a debate from time to time, whether this approach should between Europeanists and traditionalists. Michel‐ still be pursued. The question is missing from son's plea for a comparison of the end of the Pha‐ both conference and book as most of the papers nariot era in the 1820s with the end of commu‐ remain traditional approaches to well-known sub‐ nism in 1989, as both ended Romania's isolation jects. Romanian protochronism has infected most from the West, is very interesting and deserves Romanian research areas in history, literature more attention. and fne arts. As a general line, one can also ob‐ Patricia Thurston's listing of "Romanian Col‐ serve that any book on Romania has to contain lections in U.S. Research Libraries" (pp. 25-32) is a something on Eminescu and Michael the Brave; listing of well-known facts. Thurston presents otherwise it is not complete. Michael Impey brief introductions to twelve libraries and their proves with his paper on dadaism and surrealism collections regarding Romania. The value of the that there are more interesting subjects. information that the Hoover Institution hold ac‐ Everything born or created within the state cording to their 1990 (!) brochure some 14,000 borders of Greater Romania of 1918 is subsumed volumes of monographs, 250 periodical titles, under "Romanian." Florenta Ivaniuc's paper on nearly 60 newspapers, and 56 archival collections Romanian landscape in engravings from the six‐ is in 1997 rather questionable. The telnet address‐ teenth through eighteenth centuries refers to ex‐
4 H-Net Reviews amples in Timisoara and Oradea whose Romani‐ Center exemplifes the uninspiredness of the book anness can well be questioned for that period (pp. as a whole. 73-84). Ladis Kristof acquaints the reader with the Copyright (c) 1998 by H-Net, all rights re‐ career of the singer Joseph Schmidt (1904-1942) served. This work may be copied for non-proft from Bukovina whose nationality seems to be dif‐ educational use if proper credit is given to the re‐ ferent from his (later) citizenship (pp. 93-100). viewer and to HABSBURG. For other permission, Stela Maries also includes in the charts about Ro‐ please contact
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Citation: Gudrun Staedel-Schneider. Review of Treptow, Kurt W., ed. Romania and Western Civilization / Romania si civilizatia occidentala. HABSBURG, H-Net Reviews. August, 1998.
URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=2271
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