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6-7 / 2025

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featured Transilvania 6-7.2025
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Revista: 6-7 / 2025
Anul Publicarii:2025
Print ISSN: 0255-0539
Electronic ISSN: 3061-2217

Științe socio-umane

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FEM100: note pentru revizitarea canonului teatral românesc

Autor: Cristina Modreanu, Miruna Runcan, Raluca Sas-Marinescu, Anca Hațiegan, Delia Gavlițchi, Mihai Pedestru, Ivona Tătar Vîstraș, Katalin Ágnes Bartha
Email: cmodreanu@gmail.com

FEM100: Notes for Revisiting the Romanian Theatrical Canon

Abstract: The dossier FEM100/Transilvania. Notes for Revisiting the Romanian Theatrical Canon, coordinated by Cristina Modreanu, brings together theoretical and analytical contributions developed within the research program Feminist Theatre Archive FEM100 (www.fem100.ro). Continuing the work initiated through the Multimedia Dictionary of Romanian Theatre (www.dmtr.ro), FEM100 focuses on the recovery, opening, and reactivation of theatrical archives, aiming to complement the Romanian theatrical canon with the professional trajectories of women creators who were underrecognized in their time or later forgotten. The studies gathered in this issue approach the topic from multiple perspectives: Miruna Runcan revisits the complex figure of Ecaterina Oproiu, exploring her position as a feminist journalist and editor during the communist regime; Olivia Grecea proposes the concept of a “feminism of affects”, examining how feminine affectivity reshapes theatrical creation and pedagogy; Raluca Sas Marinescu investigates the professional and personal resilience of women working in theatre literary departments before 1989, positioning them as ethical and institutional backbones of Romanian theatre; and Anca Hațiegan maps the landscape of Romanian women’s playwriting between 1870 and 1948, offering the first systematic overview of a largely forgotten cultural field. Together, these contributions outline a model for recontextualizing and revisiting the Romanian theatrical canon, suggesting the premises for its future rewriting from a feminist and inclusive perspective. Together, these contributions outline a model for recontextualizing and revisiting the Romanian theatrical canon, suggesting the premises for its future rewriting from a feminist and inclusive perspective. Building on this foundation, the FEM100 project unfolds through multifaceted research presented as online exhibitions developed over two years of continuous investigation—each conceptually motivated and critically articulated by its respective authors.

Keywords: Feminist Theatre Archive; Romanian theatre; theatrical canon; women playwrights; feminist criticism; affect theory; cultural memory; theatre historiography; gender and performance; institutional resilience.

Acknowledgement: Programul Arhiva Feministă de Teatru FEM100 este produs de Asociația Română pentru Promovarea Artelor Spectacolului, în parteneriat cu Universitatea de Arte din Târgu Mureș și Institutul de Cercetări Teatrale și Multimedia al UAT și Univesitatea Babeș-Bolyai, Facultatea de Teatru și Film, cu finanțare AFCN.

“Dicționarul Multimedia al Teatrului Românesc” [Multimedia Dictionary of Romanian Theatre]. www.dmtr.ro.

Burța-Cernat, Bianca. Fotografie de grup cu scriitoare uitate. Proza feminină interbelică [Group Photo with Forgotten Women Writers: Interwar Women’s Prose]. Bucharest: Cartea Românească, 2011.

Caraiman, Carmen Daniela. Aspecte ale dramaturgiei feminine românești [Aspects of Romanian Women’s Playwriting]. Bucharest: Editura Pro Universitaria, 2012.

Dehel, Gábor. Bisztrai Mária. Beszélgetőkönyv [Bisztrai Mária: A Conversation Book]. Cluj-Napoca: Korunk Komp-Press, 2011.

Iosif, Mira. Teatrul nostru cel de toate zilele [Our Everyday Theatre]. Bucharest: Meridiane, 1977.

Massoff, Ioan. Teatrul românesc. Privire istorică [Romanian Theatre: A Historical Overview]. Vols. VII–VIII. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1978–1981.

Pop, Elisabeta, and Raluca Sas-Marinescu, eds. Ariel din spatele scenei [Ariel Behind the Stage]. Cluj-Napoca: Editura Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2021.

Popescu, Radu. Cronici dramatice [Dramatic Chronicles]. Bucharest: Meridiane, 1974.

Strihan, Andrei. Contururi scenice [Stage Contours]. Bucharest: Meridiane, 1975.

Szebeni, Zsuzsa. Kovács Ildikó, regizor de teatru de păpuși [Kovács Ildikó, Puppet Theatre Director]. Cluj-Napoca: Asociația Puppet Media, 2018.

Tavitian, Anaid. Eugeania Tărășescu-Jianu scenograf [Eugeania Tărășescu-Jianu, Stage Designer]. Constanța: EX Ponto, 2018.

Tulbure, Raluca. “Cu fiecare spectacol începi altă viață” [With Every Performance You Begin Another Life]. Teatrul azi, nos. 7–9 (2013): 65–71.

Ecaterina Oproiu ca jurnalistă feministă: o revizitare critică

Autor: Miruna Runcan
Email: mirunaruncan2@gmail.com

Ecaterina Oproiu as feminist journalist. A critical revisiting

Abstract: Ecaterina Oproiu was the most sparkling and powerful film journalist of Romania in the communist era, known and admired as head of the monthly magazine Cinema, but also for her reports from international film festivals or for her charming presentations of old movies at the National Television. She was vice-president of FIPRESCI (International Federation of Film Critics) for more than twenty years. She was also a successful playwright. Even if after 1990 she survived as a public figure only as a member of the National Audiovisual Council (1994-2004) she published between 2013 and 2017 one drama collection, two novels and three volumes of memoirs. The paper, a fragment of a wider research dedicated to her work and life in their political frame, tries to revisit her (nearly forgotten) journalistic-feminist project unfolded between 1972 and 1975.

Keywords: Ecaterina Oproiu, Feminism, Nonfiction literature, Communist Media, Press Archives

Acknowledgment: This paper is a sample of the ARPAS and UBB Cluj Project of research & creation FEM 100, financed by AFCN 2024.

 

Lóránd, Zsófia, Adela Hîncu, Jovana Mihajlović Trbovc, and Katarzyna Stańczak-Wiślicz, eds. Texts and Contexts from the History of Feminism and Women’s Rights: East Central Europe, Second Half of the Twentieth Century. Budapest and New York: CEU Press, 2024.

Niel, Mathilde. Drama eliberării femeii [The Drama of Women’s Liberation]. Bucharest: Editura Politică, 1974.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. Un idol pentru fiecare [An Idol for Everyone]. Bucharest: Editura Meridiane, 1970.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “12,30.” Contemporanul, no. 25 (1970): 5.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “A merge” [To Walk]. Contemporanul, no. 37 (1972): 5.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “Condiția femeii. Ce vrea femeia? Ce-o fi vrînd ea?” [The Condition of Woman. What Does a Woman Want? What Could She Want?]. Contemporanul, no. 9 (1972): 10.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “Condiția femeii. Misoginele” [The Condition of Woman. The Misogynists]. Contemporanul, no. 10 (1972): 8.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “Convorbire cu o femeie «egală», o femeie mulțumită, o femeie care n-are frica de nimeni, o femeie căreia nu-i lipsește nimic” [Conversation with an ‘Equal’ Woman, a Satisfied Woman, a Woman Who Fears No One, a Woman Who Lacks Nothing]. Contemporanul, no. 9 (1972): 8.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “Femeia. Cel mai frumos obiect din lume” [The Woman. The Most Beautiful Object in the World]. Contemporanul, no. 12 (1972): 8.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “O femeie triumfătoare” [A Triumphant Woman]. Contemporanul, no. 11 (1972): 8.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “Duminică la Vulcana. La fîn” [Sunday at Vulcana. At the Hay]. Contemporanul, no. 7 (1973): 8.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “Bună dimineața, tovarășa procuroare” [Good Morning, Comrade Prosecutor]. Contemporanul, no. 32 (1973): 1–2.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “Prin urmare, curajul…” [Therefore, Courage…]. Contemporanul, no. 46 (1973): 8.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “A trăi! Dar cum?” [To Live! But How?]. Contemporanul, no. 47 (1973): 8.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. “O primăriță” [A Woman Mayor]. România literară, no. 10 (1975): 7.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. 3×8 plus infinitul. Dialoguri despre condiția femeii [3×8 Plus Infinity: Dialogues on the Condition of Women]. Bucharest: Editura Eminescu, 1975.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. Jurnal 1. Bucharest: Editura Semne, 2013.

Oproiu, Ecaterina. Jurnal 2. Bucharest: Editura Semne, 2015–2016.

Runcan, Miruna. DamenVals. Voci feminine în critica de teatru a secolului XX [DamenVals: Women’s Voices in Theatre Criticism in the Twentieth Century]. Bucharest: Tracus Arte, 2024.

Runcan, Miruna. “Feminism and Antifeminism in Romanian Theatre Criticism in Interwar Years.” Metacritic Journal for Comparative Studies and Theory 10, no. 1 (2024): 216–237.

Feminismul afectelor feminine

Autor: Olivia Grecea
Email: olivia.grecea@ubbcluj.ro

The Feminism of Feminine Affect

Abstract: Feminine affect as a tool for analysis and resistance is explored through notions from the theory of affect (Ahmed, Ngai) and feminism critique (Hanisch). Centering on feminine affect, the three contemporary performances referenced (All the quiet in the world, The homemakers’ apocalypse and Under water) structure their dramaturgy and staging to create a space of healing and claiming autonomy for their protagonists. Within postdramatic and minimalist aesthetics, these herstories unravel under the pressure of affect, transforming female vulnerability into autonomy and agency.

Keywords: feminist theatre, affect theory, independent theatre, vulnerability, autonomy, agency, FEM100

 

Ahmed, Sara. “Affective Economies.” Social Text 22, no. 2 (2004).

Ahmed, Sara. Living a Feminist Life. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 2017.

Aston, Elaine. “Agitating for Change: Theatre and a Feminist ‘Network of Resistance.’” Theatre Research International 41, no. 1 (2016): 5–20. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0307883315000589.

Hanisch, Carol. “The Personal Is Political.” Accessed March 20, 2025. https://www.carolhanisch.org/CHwritings/PIP.html.

Lehmann, Hans-Thies. Postdramatic Theatre. London and New York: Routledge, 2006.

Mouffe, Chantal. Agonistics: Thinking the World Politically. London: Verso, 2013.

Ngai, Sianne. Ugly Feelings. Cambridge, MA, and London: Harvard University Press, 2005.

Reinthal, Teone, and Sue Lovell. “I Saw a Woman: Performance, Performativity and Affect.” Anglistica AION 18, no. 1 (2014): 79–91.

Richard, Nelly. Masculine/Feminine. Durham, NC, and London: Duke University Press, 2004.

Femeile din secretariatele literare înainte de 1989 – working class heroes: între viața profesională și viața personală

Autor: Raluca Sas-Marinescu
Email: raluca.sas@ubbcluj.ro

Women in literary management before 1989 – working class heroes: navigating between professional and personal life

Abstract: Before 1989 the literary manager of a theatre, in Romania, was the „brain” of the institution, having a completely random working program which put him/her in the position of navigating between professional and personal life. As a woman, having a husband from outside the theatre world, the home duties and eventually children, the time management of everyday life became more important as ever. Without the help of tehnology – that eased our life on so many levels – every minute counted. In this article we will explore the braiding between personal and professional life in the case of women literary managers based on a documentation of more than four years, summing up more that forty confesions from professionals in the field and interviews with the targeted subjects. The article is structured in two parts, inside and outside the theatre life, trying to create this parallelism and to undersand how many hours a day had for a literary manager, woman, with a family, before 1989.

Keywords: women, literary managers, theatre life, communist Romania

Acknowledgment: This paper is a sample of the ARPAS and Babeș-Bolyai University Cluj Project of research & creation FEM 100, financed by AFCN 2024.

 

Cornea, Ovidiu. “Cu Paul Everac la Casa Albă…” [With Paul Everac at the White House…]. In Ariel din spatele scenei [Ariel Behind the Scenes], edited by Elisabeta Pop and Raluca Sas-Marinescu. Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2021.

Fem100. “Secretariatele literare: femei în arhivele scenei” [Literary Secretariats: Women in the Archives of the Stage]. fem100, October 1, 2024. https://fem100.ro/expozitii/secretariate-literare-femei-in-arhiva-scenei/.

Fodor, Zeno. “Secretariatul literar – o necesitate” [The Literary Secretariat – A Necessity]. In Ariel din spatele scenei [Ariel Behind the Scenes], edited by Elisabeta Pop and Raluca Sas-Marinescu. Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2021.

Malița, Liviu, ed. Să nu privești înapoi: Comunism, dramaturgie, societate [Do Not Look Back: Communism, Dramaturgy, Society]. Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2022.

Papp, Doina. “Vedere dintr-un exil devenit împărăție” [View from an Exile That Became a Kingdom]. In Ariel din spatele scenei [Ariel Behind the Scenes], edited by Elisabeta Pop and Raluca Sas-Marinescu. Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2021.

Pop, Elisabeta. “De la Irkuțk la… Hollywood. Ce mai poveste…” [“From Irkutsk to… Hollywood. What a Story…”]. In Ariel din spatele scenei [Ariel Behind the Scenes], edited by Elisabeta Pop and Raluca Sas-Marinescu. Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2021.

Pop, Elisabeta, and Raluca Sas-Marinescu, eds. Ariel din spatele scenei [Ariel Behind the Scenes]. Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2022.

Popa, Doina. “În viață am fost o luptătoare… Doina (Pica) Popa se mărturisește” [In Life I Was a Fighter… Doina (Pica) Popa Confesses]. In Ariel din spatele scenei [Ariel Behind the Scenes], edited by Elisabeta Pop and Raluca Sas-Marinescu. Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2021.

Ștef, Anca. “Cum se tipăreau ziarele în comunism. Plumbul de dincolo de cuvintele tipărite” [How Newspapers Were Printed in Communism: The Lead Beyond the Printed Words]. PressOne, March 15, 2024. https://pressone.ro/cum-se-tipareau-ziarele-in-comunism-plumbul-de-dincolo-de-cuvintele-tiparite.

Țepuș, Marinela. “Ce poate fi mai frumos decât să fii plătit pentru că citești teatru, vezi teatru, vorbești despre teatru, scrii despre teatru!” [What Could Be More Beautiful Than Being Paid to Read Theatre, See Theatre, Talk About Theatre, Write About Theatre!] In Ariel din spatele scenei [Ariel Behind the Scenes], edited by Elisabeta Pop and Raluca Sas-Marinescu. Cluj-Napoca: Presa Universitară Clujeană, 2021.

O cartografie a dramaturgiei feminine românești (1920-1948) (cu o privire preliminară asupra pionierelor de dinainte de Primul Război Mondial)

Autor: Anca Hațiegan
Email: anca.hatiegan@ubbcluj.ro

A Cartography of Romanian Female Playwriting (1920–1948) (Including a Preliminary Glimpse into the Pre-World War I Pioneers) 

Abstract: This article presents the first systematic mapping of Romanian women’s playwriting from the early pioneering period (1870) to the aftermath of World War II (1948). Moving beyond the canonical focus on a few major figures, the research reconstructs the broader cultural ecosystem of female playwrights and theatrical productions. Drawing on feminist materialist theory and the sociology of the literary field, it analyses the social, educational, and symbolic conditions that shaped women’s access to playwriting and theatrical visibility. The study provides a foundation for future critical readings of texts within the historical dynamics of Romanian female authorship.

Key words: women, playwrights, drama, Romanian, theatre, inter-war, FEM100

Alterescu, Simion (editor-in-chief), Anca Costa-Foru, Olga Flegont, Mihai Florea, Letiția Gâtză, Jancsó Elemer, Ovidiu Papadima, and Ion Zamfirescu. Chapter II, “Repertoriu și dramaturgie” [“Repertoire and Dramaturgy”]. In Istoria teatrului în România, vol. II (1849–1918) [The History of Theatre in Romania, vol. II (1849–1918)], 112–232. Bucharest: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, 1971.

Alterescu, Simion (editor-in-chief), Ion Cazaban, Anca Costa-Foru, Olga Flegont, Mihai Florea, Letiția Gâtză, Jancsó Elemer, Ana Maria Popescu, and Liliana Țopa. “Dramaturgia” [“Dramaturgy”]. In Istoria teatrului în România, vol. III (1919–1944) [The History of Theatre in Romania, vol. III (1919–1944)], 143–234. Bucharest: Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste România, 1973.

Baltazar, Camil. Contemporan cu ei. Amintiri și portrete [Contemporary with Them. Memories and Portraits]. Bucharest: Editura pentru Literatură, 1962.

Bourdieu, Pierre. Dominația masculină [Masculine Domination]. Translated from French and preface by Bogdan Ghiu. Bucharest: Editura Meridiane, 2003.

Bourdieu, Pierre. Regulile artei. Geneza și structura câmpului literar [The Rules of Art: Genesis and Structure of the Literary Field]. Translated from French by Laura Albulescu and Bogdan Ghiu, preface by Mircea Martin. Bucharest: Editura Art, 2012.

Brădățeanu, Virgil. Istoria literaturii dramatice românești și a artei spectacolului [History of Romanian Dramatic Literature and Performing Arts]. Bucharest: Editura Didactică și Pedagogică, 1979.

Burța-Cernat, Bianca. Fotografie de grup cu scriitoare uitate. Proza feminină interbelică [Group Photograph with Forgotten Women Writers: Interwar Women’s Prose]. Bucharest: Cartea Românească, 2011.

Călinescu, G. Istoria literaturii române de la origini până în prezent [History of Romanian Literature from Its Origins to the Present]. București: Fundația Regală pentru Literatură și Artă, 1941. Facsimile edition: Bucharest: Editura Semne, 2003.

Caraiman, Carmen Daniela. Aspecte ale dramaturgiei feminine românești [Aspects of Romanian Women’s Playwriting]. Bucharest: Editura Pro Universitaria, 2012.

Cemortan, Leonid. “Repertoriul Teatrului Național din Chișinău (1920–1935)” [The Repertoire of the National Theatre of Chișinău (1920–1935)]. In Teatrul Național din Chișinău (1920–1935). Schiță istorică [The National Theatre of Chișinău (1920–1935). A Historical Sketch], 293–301. Chișinău: Editura Epigraf, 2000.

Ceuca, Justin. “Repertoriul Teatrului Național Cluj-Napoca” [The Repertoire of the Cluj-Napoca National Theatre]. In Justin Ceuca et al., Teatrul Național Cluj-Napoca 1919–1994. Teatrul românesc din Transilvania 240 de ani. Studiu monografic [The Cluj-Napoca National Theatre 1919–1994. Romanian Theatre in Transylvania: 240 Years. A Monographic Study], 283–296. Cluj: Teatrul Național Cluj-Napoca, 1994.

Crohmălniceanu, Ov. S. Literatura română între cele două războaie mondiale, vol. 1, Introducere. Publicații, grupări și direcții literare. Formule estetice mai largi. Proza [Romanian Literature between the Two World Wars, vol. 1, Introduction. Publications, Groups and Literary Trends. Broader Aesthetic Forms. Prose]. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1972.

Crohmălniceanu, Ov. S. “Dramaturgia” [Drama]. In Literatura română între cele două războaie mondiale, vol. 3, Dramaturgia și critica literară [Drama and Literary Criticism], 5–113. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1975.

Delphy, Christine. “The Main Enemy: A Materialist Analysis of Women’s Oppression.” Feminist Issues 1, no. 2 (1980): 23–40.

Dicționarul general al literaturii române [The General Dictionary of Romanian Literature]. 2nd revised, enlarged and updated edition. General coordinator: Eugen Simion. 8 vols. Bucharest: Fundația Națională pentru Știință și Artă (and Editura Muzeul Național al Literaturii Române for volumes I–VI), 2016–2021.

Dicționarul scriitorilor români [Dictionary of Romanian Writers]. Scientific coordination and revision by Mircea Zaciu, Marian Papahagi, and Aurel Sasu. 4 vols. Bucharest: Editura Fundației Culturale Române (vols. I–II); Bucharest: Editura Albatros (vols. III–IV), 1995–2002.

Dramaturgia feminină românească între 1920 și 1948 [Romanian Women’s Playwriting between 1920 and 1948]. Curated by Anca Hațiegan. https://fem100.ro/expozitii/dramaturgia-feminina-romaneasca-intre-1920-si-1948/

Dunca, Constanția. Martira inimei. Dramă în cinci acte [The Martyr of the Heart: A Five-Act Drama]. Bucharest: Tipografia Statului, Hotelul Șerban-Vodă, 1870.

Faifer, Florin. Incursiuni în istoria literaturii dramatice românești. – Regăsiri – [Excursions into the History of Romanian Dramatic Literature: Rediscoveries]. Iași: Universitas XXI, 2008.

Faifer, Florin. Dramaturgi români [Romanian Playwrights]. Iași: Editura Universității „Al. I. Cuza”, 2009.

Firescu, Alexandru, și Constantin Gheorghiu. “Repertoriul Teatrului Național Craiova 1842–2000” [The Repertoire of the National Theatre of Craiova 1842–2000]. In Istoria Teatrului Național din Craiova 1850–2000 [The History of the National Theatre of Craiova 1850–2000], 482–497. Craiova: Aius, 2000.

Flechtmacher, Maria. Poezii și proză [Poetry and Prose]. Bucharest: Tipografia Națională Antrepriza C. N. Rădulescu, 1871.

Floru, Igena. Fără reazem – piesă în 3 acte [Without Support – A Play in 3 Acts]. Bucharest: Editura Librăriei Socec & Comp., 1922.

Ghițulescu, Mircea. Istoria literaturii române. Dramaturgia [History of Romanian Literature. Drama]. 2nd ed. Bucharest: Editura Tracus Arte, 2008.

Giuhat, Geanina. “Dubla periferalitate a poetelor din perioada interbelică: Infantilizarea și minimalizarea autoarelor de la cenaclul Sburătorul” [The Double Marginality of Interwar Women Poets: Infantilization and Marginalization of Women Writers at the Sburătorul Literary Circle]. Transilvania, no. 6–7 (2024): 33–45.

Hasdeu, B. P. “D-șoara Constanța Dunca. Martira inimei, dramă în cinci acte” [Miss Constanța Dunca. The Martyr of the Heart, a Five-Act Drama]. In Opere III, Studii și articole literare, filosofice și culturale. Studii și articole de economie politică [Works III, Literary, Philosophical and Cultural Studies and Articles. Studies and Articles on Political Economy], edited by Stancu Ilin and I. Oprișan, introduction by Eugen Simion, 915–918. București: Fundația Națională pentru Știință și Artă, Univers Enciclopedic, 2007.

Hațiegan, Anca. “Captive într-un mariaj nefericit. Personaje feminine în dramaturgia Hortensiei Papadat-Bengescu și a lui Camil Petrescu” [Captive in an Unhappy Marriage: Female Characters in the Drama of Hortensia Papadat-Bengescu and Camil Petrescu]. România literară, LVII, no. 14, March 28, 2025: 26. https://romanialiterara.com/2025/03/captive-intr-un-mariaj-nefericit-personaje-feminine-in-dramaturgia-hortensiei-papadat-bengescu-si-a-lui-camil-petrescu/.

Iorga, N. Istoria literaturii românești contemporane. I. Partea întâi. Crearea formei (1867–1890), II. Partea a doua. În căutarea fondului (1890–1934) [History of Contemporary Romanian Literature. Part I: The Creation of Form (1867–1890), Part II: In Search of Substance (1890–1934)]. Bucharest: Editura „Adevărul”, 1934.

Lovinescu, E. Istoria literaturii române contemporane (1900–1937) [History of Contemporary Romanian Literature (1900–1937)]. In Opere II, edited by Nicolae Mecu, text edited, notes and commentary by Alexandra Ciocârlie, Alexandru Farcaș, Nicolae Mecu, and Daciana Vlădoiu, introduction by Eugen Simion. Bucharest: Academia Română, Fundația Națională pentru Știință și Artă, 2015.

Manolescu, Nicolae. Istoria critică a literaturii române. 5 secole de literatură [Critical History of Romanian Literature: 5 Centuries of Literature]. Pitești: Editura Paralela 45, 2008.

Massoff, Ioan. Teatrul românesc. Privire istorică [Romanian Theatre. A Historical Overview], vols. V–VIII. București: Editura Minerva (vols. V–VI), Editura pentru Literatură (vols. VII–VIII), 1974–1981.

Mîndra, V. Incursiuni în istoria dramaturgiei române. De la Gh. Asachi la Camil Petrescu [Excursions into the History of Romanian Drama: From Gh. Asachi to Camil Petrescu]. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1971.

Mîndra, V. Istoria literaturii dramatice românești. Vol. I, De la începuturi până la 1890 [The History of Romanian Dramatic Literature. Vol. I: From the Beginnings to 1890]. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1985.

Negoițescu, I. Istoria literaturii române, vol. I (1800–1945) [History of Romanian Literature, vol. I (1800–1945)]. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1991.

Negru, Monica. “Aida Vrioni, prima jurnalistă profesionistă din România” [“Aida Vrioni, the First Professional Female Journalist in Romania”]. Orizonturi culturale italo-române / Orizzonti culturali italo-romeni XI, no. 4 (2021).
https://www.orizonturiculturale.ro/ro_articol_Aida-Vrioni-prima-jurnalista-profesionista-din-Romania.html.

Sadoveanu, Profira. “«Evenimentul real, adevărul, l-au impresionat întotdeauna pe Sadoveanu, ele erau punctul de plecare în tot ce scria»” [The Real Event, the Truth, Always Impressed Sadoveanu; They Were the Starting Point for All His Writing]. Interview by Cornelia Djigola. Luceafărul 22 (787) (29 mai 1977): 8.

Sasu, Aurel, și Mariana Vartic. Dramaturgia românească în interviuri. O istorie autobiografică [Romanian Drama in Interviews. An Autobiographical History]. 5 vols. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1995–1997.

Scott, Joan W. “Gender: A Useful Category of Historical Analysis.” The American Historical Review 91, no. 5 (December 1986): 1053–1075.

Sircuța, Cristina. Viața femeilor în România interbelică [The Lives of Women in Interwar Romania], foreword by Victor Neumann, afterword by Armin Heinen. București: Oscar Print, 2016.

Stahl, Henriette Yvonne. “Plumb” [“Lead”]. Viața Românească 21, no. 11–12 (November–December 1929): 82–113; and 22, no. 1–2–3 (January, February, March 1930): 142–158.

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Biblioteconomie

Științele limbii

Științele economice

Antropologie. Studii filozofice

Teologie

Studii literare

Herbert Augustus Strong, The ‘Other’ World Literature and Ethnographic ‘Salvage’

Autor: Angus Nicholls
Email: a.j.nicholls@qmul.ac.uk

Abstract: This article focuses on a Melbourne-based member of the Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum editorial board, the classicist and comparative philologist Herbert Augustus Strong (1841–1919). It explores Strong’s contribution to a project first announced by the Acta Comparationis in 1879: the compilation of an “Encyclopaedia of the Poetry of the World.” Challenging the predominant alignment of the term Weltliteratur with the notion of a transnational canon of prose masterpieces, the article argues that for the editors of the Acta Comparationis, Weltliteratur was also an ethnographic project aimed at assembling a record of the world’s diverse cultures. This undertaking was shaped by a scientistic theory of literary expression, according to which oral literatures were seen to represent the earliest and allegedly most ‘primitive’ stage of literary evolution. Adopting one of the prominent discourses of colonial anthropology—namely, that of ethnographic ‘salvage’—the Acta Comparationis embraced the view that it was essential to collect samples of the oral literatures of colonised populations before their anticipated extinction. The article reveals that an Indigenous Australian ‘folksong’ sent by Strong to Cluj/Kolozsvár/Klausenburg and published in the Acta Comparationis had been transcribed—likely with very questionable accuracy—by the colonial missionary John Bulmer (1833–1913). Viewed in this light, Strong’s collaboration with the Acta Comparationis serves as a case study highlighting the colonial and evolutionist origins of comparative literature.

Keywords: Herbert Augustus Strong, John Bulmer, world literature, evolutionism, ethnographic ‘salvage.’

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Meltzl, Hugo. “Vorläufige Aufgaben der vergleichenden Litteratur. III: Der Dekaglottismus.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum 1, no. 24 (1878): 494–501.

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Schüttpelz, Erhard. Die Moderne im Spiegel des Primitiven. Weltliteratur und Ethnologie, 1870–1960. Munich: Wilhlem Fink, 2005.

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Rasmus Bjørn Anderson, Hugo Meltzl, and the Scandinavian New World

Autor: Gianina Druță
Email: gianina.druta@oslomet.no

Abstract: The aim of this essay is to investigate the role Scandinavia and its scholarship network may play in the understanding of world literature as envisioned by Hugo Meltzl in Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum. To that effect, my analysis focuses on Rasmus Bjørn Anderson (1846-1936), a Norwegian-American member of the journal’s editorial board. Theoretically, this essay builds on Michael Werner and Bénédicte Zimmermann’s concept of “histoire croisée,” as well as Shu-mei Shih’s conceptualization of “technologies of recognition.” I dwell primarily on Anderson’s contributions in the area of Scandinavian studies, which focused on Norse mythology and literature, especially his most important works, America Not Discovered by Columbus and Norse Mythology or the Religion of Our Forefathers. They reveal Anderson’s framing of Scandinavian literature and culture, as well as his “anti-Romance” approach over and against the backdrop of late-nineteenth-century Norwegian immigration to the United States. In the context of Acta Comparationis, Anderson’s case points to the journal as a platform for achieving recognition in the word literary system of the time and to the system’s global yet selective network.

Keywords: Acta Comparationis, Rasmus Bjørn Anderson, Scandinavian studies, Norwegian-American identity, Norse mythology, Anti-Romance, histoire croisée, technologies of recognition

Acknowledgement: This work was funded by the EU’s NextGenerationEU instrument through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan of Romania—Pillar III-C9–18, through the project A Global History of Romanian Comparatism: A Case Study in Inter-Imperial Comparative Literature (1877–1944), PNRR-III-C9–2023-I8-CF 22/27.07.2023, contract no. 760276/26.03.2024.

“Bibliographie.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 10 (1877): 215.

“Bibliographie.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 14 (1877): 295.

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Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. “A Scandinavian National Song. Our Land, our Land, our Native Land.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 36 (1878): 120–122.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. America Not Discovered by Columbus. Illinois: S.C. Griggs & company, 1874.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. Julegave: et udvalg af eventyr og fortällinger / udgivet af R.B. Andersen. Illinois: “Amerika’s” Forlag, 1872.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. Life Story of Rasmus B. Anderson / Written by Himself, with the Assistance of Albert O. Barton. Madison, Wis., 1915

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. Norse Mythology: Or, the Religion of Our Forefathers, Containing All the Myths of the Eddas, Systematized and Interpreted with an Introduction, Vocabulary and Index. Illinois: S.C. Griggs and Company, 1875.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. “Scadinavian National Song by Carl Pong”. Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 44 (1878): 67–68.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. “Tegnér’s ‘Fridthofs Saga’ in America”. Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 21 (1878): 425–428.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. “The Bridal Party on the Hardanger-Fjord by Andreas Munch”. Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 24 (1878): 489–492.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. The First Chapter of Norwegian Immigration, (1821–1840). Its Causes and Results. With an Introduction on the Services Rendered by the Scandinavians to the World and to America. By Rasmus B. Anderson. Wisconsin: The author, 1896.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. “The Kalewala”. Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 31 (1878): 9–12.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. The Younger Edda: Also Called Snorre’s Edda, or the Prose Edda / with an Introduction, Notes, Vocabulary, and Index by Rasmus B. Anderson. Illinois: Scott, Foresman, 1879.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. Viking Tales of the North. The Sagas of Thorstein, Viking’s Son, and Fridthjof the Bold. Tr. from the Icelandic by Rasmus B. Anderson and Jón Bjarnason. Also, Tegnér’s Fridthjfof’s Saga. Illinois: S.C. Griggs and company, 1877.

Anderson, Rasmus Bjørn. Mythologie scandinave: Légendes des eddas. Translated by Jules Leclercq. Paris: Ernst Leroux, 1886.

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Meltzl, Hugo. “The Black Wodas”. Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 51 (1879): 11–15.

Meltzl, Hugo. “Vorläufige Aufgaben der Vergleichenden Litteratur. III. Der Dekaglottismus.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 24 (1878): 494–501.

Nicholls, Angus. “Three Translations from the Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum: ʻPreliminary Tasks of Comparative Literature, Part III: Decaglotism;ʼ ʻLaws of Comparative Literary Research;ʼ and ʻGoethe’s World Literature’.” Comparative Literature 76, no. 3 (2024): 285–293.

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From Mexico City to World Literature: Enrique Olavarría y Ferrari’s and Hugo Meltzl’s Global Literary Projects

Autor: Sarah María Medina Pérez
Email: sarahmariamedina@wustl.edu

Abstract: In founding Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum (1877), Hugo Meltzl included Spanish among ten languages of world literature, gesturing towards the journal’s linguistic politics at a global scale. His collaborator in Mexico City, Enrique de Olavarría y Ferrari, a Spanish émigré and pivotal figure in the city’s literary scene, collaborated on the literary journal Revista Universal (1868–1876), where the Cuban writer José Martí published prolifically upon arriving in Mexico City in 1875. Olavarría y Ferrari also edited the second run of El Renacimiento (1894). His editorial decisions positioned Spanish as both a tool of resistance and a means of reinscribing imperial structures. These journals became exchange points between the local and the global, creating a literary universe that transcended national boundaries and positioned Mexico City as a cosmopolitan center, expanding early comparative literature’s scope.

Keywords: Hugo Meltzl, Enrique de Olavarría y Ferrari, José Martí, transnationalism, cosmopolitanism, indigeneity.

“Announcement of Enrique Olavarría y Ferrari’s Episodios Históricos Mexicanos: El Castillo de Acapulco.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum XVII, no. 163–165 (1885): 80.

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Ixtlilxóchitl. “Aztekisches (Nahuatl) Liebeslied.” Translated by Baron Gagern. Acta Comparationis Litterarum  Universarum 12, nos. 7 & 108 (1882): 2160–2161.

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Meltzl, Hugo. “Present Tasks of Comparative Literature.” Translated by Hans-Joachim Schulz and Philip H. Rhein. In The Princeton Sourcebook in Comparative Literature: From the European Enlightenment to the Global Present, edited by David Damrosch, Natalie Melas, and Mbongsieni Buthelezi, 44–47. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2009.

Meltzl, Hugo. “Vorläufige Aufgaben der Vergleichenden Litteratur. II. Das Prinzip des Polyglottismus.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 15 (1877): 307–315.

Meltzl, Hugo, and Samuel Brassai, eds. “Összehasonlító Irodalomtörténelmi Lapok: Zeitschrift Für Vergleichende Litterature.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum 5, no. 49 & 50 (1879): 49–50.

Olavarría y Ferrari, Enrique. Episodios históricos mexicanos. El castillo de Acapulco. Continuación de las memorias de un criollo. 1813. México: Tipografía Literaria de Filomeno Mata, 1882.

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Valerio, Miguel Alejandro. Sovereign Joy: Afro-Mexican Kings and Queens, 1539–1640. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2022.

Vásquez Meléndez, Miguel Ángel. “Enrique de Olavarría y Ferrari, heredero de un conflicto (1869–1896).” In Conflicto, resistencia y negociación en la historia, edited by Pilar Gonzalbo Aizpuru and Leticia Mayer Celis, 379–406. Ciudad de México: El Colegio de México, 2016.

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Giuseppe Cassone and the Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum

Autor: Nagy K. Krisztina
Email: nagy.krisztina@elte.hu

Abstract: Giuseppe Cassone was a key figure in the Italian network of Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, alongside notable individuals such as Giuseppe Fraccaroli, Emilio Teza, Tommaso Cannizzaro, Dora dʼIstria, Giuseppe de Spuches di Galati, Giuseppe Biadego, Francesco Cipolla, and Giuseppe Pitrè. As illustrated in the annex detailing the early organization of the Italian network, Cassone was undoubtedly one of its initiators, central contacts, and vital nodes. However, this collaborative community was highly stratified, and its members quickly became more independent. This paper will first examine Cassone’s literary career, works, and affinity for Hungarian literature, and then delve into his relationship with Acta Comparationis.

Keywords: Giuseppe Cassone, Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, Italian network, cultural brokers.

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Szabó T., Levente. “A megszelídített Petőfi? Az 1874-es Petőfi-díszkiadás körüli vita és a korabeli Petőfi-filológia egyidejű egyidejűtlenségei.” In “Szirt a habok közt” Tanulmányok Imre László 70. születésnapjára, edited by Péter Bényei et al., 156–169. Debrecen: Debreceni Egyetemi Kiadó, 2014.

Szabó T., Levente. “The Subversive Politics of Multilingualism in the First International Journal of Comparative Literary Studies.” In Paradoxes du plurilinguisme littéraire 1900: Réflexions théoriques et études de cas, edited by Britta Benert, 229–250. Berlin: Peter Lang, 2015.

Szabó T., Levente. “International Exhibitions, Literary Capitalism, and the Emergence of Comparative Literature.” Journal of World Literature 7, no. 3 (2022): 332–347.

A Portrait of Nishikanta Chattopadhyaya: The Quintessential Indian Comparatist before Tagore

Autor: Jey Sushil
Email: jeysushil@wustl.edu

Abstract: Over the past two decades, the origin stories of world literature have been increasingly challenged. Rabindranath Tagore’s 1907 lecture on world literature became an important text. The history of comparative literature in India can, however, be traced back to the 1890s by examining the figure of Nishikanta Chattopadhyaya, who was a member of the editorial board of Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum. One of the earliest Indians to pursue a PhD abroad, Chattopadhyaya wrote on religion through a comparative lens. This essay highlights his contribution to comparative literature and extends the origin story of comparative literature back to the late nineteenth century. 

Keywords: comparative literature, comparative religion, drama, Hinduism, Buddhism.

Bâlici, Mihnea. “For a Post-Imperial Discipline: On Dora d’Istria and Hugo Meltzl’s Travels.” Transilvania, no. 5 (2025): 55–67.

Chaudhuri, Rosinka. “The Rustle of Language.” In Tagore: The World as His Nest, edited by Sangeeta Datta and Subhoranjan Dasgupta. Kolkata: Jadavpur University Press, 2016. https://www.india-seminar.com/2011/623/623_rosinka_chaudhuri.htm. Accessed March 24, 2025.

Tagore, Rabindranath. “World Literature.” In World Literature in Theory, edited by David Damrosch, 47–57. Hoboken: Wiley Blackwell, 2014.

Chattopadhyaya, Nisikanta. The Yātrās; or, The Popular Dramas of Bengal. Calcutta: Susanta Majumdar, 1976.

Chattopadhyaya, Nisikanta. Buddhism & Christianity, with an appendix on Nirvana. London: Freethought Publishing Company, 1882.

Chattopadhyaya, Nishikanta. Three Lectures: The Reminiscences of the German University Life; The True Theosophist; and The Mricchakatikam, or The Toy Cart. Bombay: Education Society’s Steam Press, 1895.

Chattopadhyaya, Nishikanta. Why Have I Accepted Islam? Lecture held at The Quran-o-Seerat Society, Hyderabad, August 26, 1904.

Chattopadhyaya, Nishikanta. A Lecture on Zoroastrianism. Madras: The Theosophist Office, Adyar Benares and London, 1906.

Transnational Routes and National Constraints of Transylvanian Comparatism: A Portrait of Grigore Silași

Autor: Márta Zabán & Cosmin Borza
Email: marta.zaban@ubbcluj.ro

Abstract: This portrait focuses on Grigore Silașiʼs educational background and institutional activity, aiming to delineate the influence of the socio-political context of Transylvania prior to and following the 1867 Austro-Hungarian Compromise on comparative practices. The article primarily covers the documentary restitution of Silașiʼs intellectual biography, moving beyond the oversized clichés that shaped his place in Romanian cultural memory, as the first university professor of Romanian language and literature in Transylvania and as an advocate for Romanian rights within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In order to attain a more nuanced comprehension of Silașiʼs turn to comparative literature, this biographical restitution examines the influence of the Greek-Catholic Church in nineteenth-century Transylvania, the academic profile of the University of Cluj/ Kolozsvár/ Klausenburg, and the political initiatives employed by the cultural organizations largely supported by young Romanian Transylvanians. 

Keywords: Grigore Silași, Greek-Catholic church, University of Cluj, Kolozsvár, Klausenburg, national identity, multiconfessional Transylvania.

 

“Kolozs megye most folyó közgyűlésének első napján” [On the First Day of the Ongoing General Assembly of Cluj County]. Ellenőr, no. 113 (1875): 2.

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“Kolozsmegye bizottsági gyűlése” [Cluj County Committee Meeting]. Magyar Polgár, no. 293 (1874): 1–2.

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Borza, Cosmin. “Peripheral Nationalism, Inter-imperial Comparatism: The Case of Grigore Silași.” Transilvania, no. 5 (2025): 1–12.

Doyle, Laura. Inter-Imperiality: Vying Empires, Gendered Labor, and the Literary Arts of Alliance. Durham: Duke University Press, 2020.

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Lupaș, Ioan. “Profesorul Grigore Silași – o victimă a intoleranței ungurești” [Professor Grigore Silași – A Victim of Hungarian Intolerance]. In Comemorarea prof. dr. Grigore Silași [The Commemoration of Professor Silași], 7–14. Biblioteca Centralei reuniunilor de meseriaşi, comercianţi, industriaşi şi muncitori români cu sediul în Cluj, 1937.

Meltzl, Hugo. “Present Tasks of Comparative Literature.” Translated by Hans-Joachim Schulz and Philip H. Rhein. In The Princeton Sourcebook in Comparative Literature: From the European Enlightenment to the Global Present, edited by David Damrosch, Natalie Melas, and Mbongsieni Buthelezi, 44–47. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2009.

Meltzl, Hugo. “Vorläufige Aufgaben der Vergleichenden Litteratur. II. Das Prinzip des Polyglottismus.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 15 (1877): 307–315.

Meltzl, Hugo. “Vorläufige Aufgaben der Vergleichenden Litteratur. III. Der Dekaglottismus.” Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, no. 24 (1878): 494–501.

Mitzen, Jennifer. Power in Concert: The Nineteenth-Century Origins of Global Governance. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2013.

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Nicholls, Angus. “Three Translations from the Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum: ʻPreliminary Tasks of Comparative Literature, Part III: Decaglotism;ʼ ʻLaws of Comparative Literary Research;ʼ and ʻGoethe’s World Literature’.” Comparative Literature 76, no. 3 (2024): 285–293.

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Szabó T., Levente. “The Glocality of the Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum: Local Interpretations of Educational Freedom, Coercive Innovation and Comparative Literature.” Hungarian Studies Yearbook 2, no. 1 (2020): 60–74.

Szabó T., Levente, and Márta Zabán, eds. Dokumentumok a kolozsvári Bölcsészet-, Nyelv- és Történettudományi Kar Történetéhez (1872–1892) [Documents for the History of the Faculty of Letters, Linguistics and History of the University of Cluj]. Kolozsvár/Cluj-Napoca: Kolozsvári Egyetemi Kiadó, 2012.

Varga, Bálint. “The Two Faces of the Hungarian Empire.” Austrian History Yearbook, no. 52 (2021): 118–130.

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Vasiliu, Gabriel. “Primii profesori de limba română de la universitatea din Cluj (1872–1919)” [The First Romanian Language Professors at the University of Cluj (1872–1919)]. Acta Mvsei Porolissensis 19, no. 444 (1995): 443–444.

von Puttkamer, Joachim. “Framework of Modernization: Government Legislation and Regulations on Schooling in Transylvania 1780–1914.” In Cultural Dimensions of Elite Formation in Transylvania (1770–1950), edited by Victor Karady and Borbála Zsuzsanna Török, 15–23. Cluj-Napoca: EDRC Foundation, 2008.

Editor’s Note: Programmatic Texts of Emerging Comparative Literature in the First International Journal of Comparative Literary Studies

Autor: Levente T. Szabó
Email: tszabo.levente@ubbcluj.ro

Editor’s Note: Programmatic Texts of Emerging Comparative Literature in the First International Journal of Comparative Literary Studies

Abstract: The first international journal of comparative literature, Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, occupies a distinctive and pioneering position in the history of global comparative literary studies. Nevertheless, a number of essential facts and connections regarding the journal remain absent from international scholarship, including its foundational programmatic texts. For this reason, the present compilation offers the original versions and translations of five key programmatic writings published in the journal. The linguistic diversity of these texts strikingly illustrates both the multilingualism of the founders and of the journal itself, while their content sheds light on several methodological questions and dilemmas of early comparative literature that remain relevant today. It was a deliberate decision to translate these programmatic texts not only into major world languages but also into several of the languages spoken in the region of Transylvania, where the founding editors were based—including one of the contemporary standard varieties of Romani, a language of particular significance to the journal. In doing so, our aim was symbolically to reintegrate the journal both into the ideal of a multilingual glocal comparatism it once envisioned.

Keywords: Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, comparative literature, programmatic texts, multilingual translation project

Editor’s Note: Selected Programmatic Translation Projects from the Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum

Autor: Levente T. Szabó
Email: tszabo.levente@ubbcluj.ro

Editor’s Note: Selected Programmatic Translation Projects from the Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum

Abstract: This selection presents previously unexplored translation projects from Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, the first international journal of comparative literature. These rediscovered experiments reveal the journal’s pioneering understanding of translation as a central comparative procedure rather than a derivative act. Through multilingual and dialectal renditions—from Romanian to Romani, Japanese, and Transylvanian Saxon— the editors, Hugo von Meltzl and Sámuel Brassai, envisioned translation as creative mediation, cultural negotiation, and theoretical reflection. By foregrounding translation’s interpretive, generative potential, this collection illuminates the early institutionalization of comparative literature and its foundational commitment to linguistic diversity and equality.

Keywords: Acta Comparationis Litterarum Universarum, comparative literature, translation projects, multilingual and dialectal translations.

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