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Stephan Roll (pen name of Gheorghe Dinu, also credited as Stéphane, Stefan or Ștefan Roll; June 5, 1904 – May 14, 1974) was a
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
n poet, editor, film critic, and communist militant. An autodidact, he played host to the Romanian avant-garde at his father's dairy shop, publishing his work in short-lived reviews and in two volumes of poetry. As one of the editors of the magazine ''
unu ''unu'' (Romanian for "one"; lower case used on purpose) was the name of an avant-garde art and literary magazine, published in Romania from April 1928 to December 1932. Edited by writers Sașa Pană and Moldov, it was dedicated to Dada and Su ...
'', he turned from
Constructivism Constructivism may refer to: Art and architecture * Constructivism (art), an early 20th-century artistic movement that extols art as a practice for social purposes * Constructivist architecture, an architectural movement in Russia in the 1920s a ...
,
Futurism Futurism ( it, Futurismo, link=no) was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy, and to a lesser extent in other countries, in the early 20th century. It emphasized dynamism, speed, technology, youth, violence, and objects such ...
and
jazz poetry Jazz poetry has been defined as poetry that "demonstrates jazz-like rhythm or the feel of improvisation" and also as poetry that takes jazz music, musicians, or the jazz milieu as its subject. Some critics consider it a distinct genre though others ...
to the more lyrical format of
Surrealism Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...
. Roll's political radicalism seeped into his avant-garde activity, and produced a split inside the ''unu'' group; Roll's faction discarded Surrealism in favor of
proletarian literature Proletarian literature refers here to the literature created by left-wing writers mainly for the class-conscious proletariat. Though the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' states that because it "is essentially an intended device of revolution", it is ...
, and affiliated with the underground
Romanian Communist Party The Romanian Communist Party ( ro, Partidul Comunist Român, , PCR) was a communist party in Romania. The successor to the pro-Bolshevik wing of the Socialist Party of Romania, it gave ideological endorsement to a communist revolution that woul ...
. An antifascist who supported groups such as ''
Amicii URSS ''Amicii URSS'' (Romanian for " heFriends of the Soviet Union"; , occasionally known as ''Prietenii URSS'' (), which carries the same meaning) was a cultural association in interwar Romania, uniting left-wing and anti-fascist intellectuals who adv ...
'' and promoted Soviet viewpoints, Roll worked on various leftist periodicals, including those of the ''
Adevărul ''Adevărul'' (; meaning "The Truth", formerly spelled ''Adevĕrul'') is a Romanian daily newspaper, based in Bucharest. Founded in Iași, in 1871, and reestablished in 1888, in Bucharest, it was the main left-wing press venue to be published dur ...
'' group and '' Cuvântul Liber''. He kept a low profile during World War II, when he was employed by the daily ''
Timpul ''Timpul'' (Romanian for "The Time") is a literary magazine published in Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine t ...
'', discreetly expressing his criticism of
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
, later contributing to the clandestine ''
România Liberă ''România liberă'' ("") is a Romanian daily newspaper founded in 1943 and currently based in Bucharest. A newspaper of the same name also existed between 1877 and 1888. History and profile The name ''România liberă'' was first used by a dai ...
''. Reemerging under the Romanian communist regime, he became a propagandist and, in his final years, worked on reducing the avant-garde content of his debut works, republishing them in altered editions. He was survived by his painter wife, Medi Wechsler-Dinu.


Biography


Early life and ''unu'' years

Roll was a native of Prekopana village in the
Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
's Manastir Vilayet; today, this is Perikopi in the Florina regional unit of Greece. His parents were Bulgarian peasants: Enache Dinu, a ''
komitadji Komitadji, Comitadjis, or Komitas (Bulgarian, Macedonian and sr, Комити, Serbian Latin: ''Komiti'', ro, Comitagiu, gr, Κομιτατζής, plural: Κομιτατζήδες, tr, Komitacı, sq, Komit) means in Turkish "committee memb ...
'' who fled to
Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
in 1907, and his wife Paraschiva. Ion Pop, in Aurel Sasu (ed.), ''Dicționarul biografic al literaturii române'', Vol. II, p. 483. Pitești: Editura Paralela 45, 2004. His formal education consisted of four grades at the Bulgarian school in Bucharest from 1911 to 1915. Avram Croitoru
"Medi Dinu – o mare doamnă care a străbătut veacul"
in ''
Realitatea Evreiască ''Realitatea Evreiască'' (Romanian for "The Jewish Reality") is a Romanian cultural and news magazine, based in Bucharest, and addressed to the local Jewish community. The magazine was founded in 1956 under the name ''Revista Cultului Mozaic di ...
'', Nr. 294–295 (1094–1095), April–May 2008, p. 11
As his letters show, he always had difficulties writing proper Romanian, and devised his own spelling of various words. Doris Mironescu
"Avangarda în corespondență: prietenie literară"
in ''
Convorbiri Literare ''Convorbiri Literare'' ( Romanian: ''Literary Talks'') is a Romanian literary magazine published in Romania. It is among the most important journals of the nineteenth-century Romania. History and profile ''Convorbiri Literare'' was founded by ...
'', August 2012
Dinu spent his youth in a multicultural environment, spending time in the
Romanian Jewish The history of the Jews in Romania concerns the Jews both of Romania and of Romanian origins, from their first mention on what is present-day Romanian territory. Minimal until the 18th century, the size of the Jewish population increased after ...
neighborhoods, and acting as the ''
shabbos goy A ''Shabbos goy'', ''Shabbat goy'' or ''Shabbes goy'' ( yi, שבת גוי, ''shabbos goy''; he, גוי של שבת, ''goy shel shabbat''; plural ''Shabbos goyim'') is a non-Jew who is employed by Jews to perform certain types of work ('' melakha' ...
'', preserving links with the
Zionist Zionism ( he, צִיּוֹנוּת ''Tsiyyonut'' after ''Zion'') is a nationalist movement that espouses the establishment of, and support for a homeland for the Jewish people centered in the area roughly corresponding to what is known in Je ...
A. L. Zissu Abraham Leib Zissu (first name also Avram, middle name also Leiba or Leibu; he, אברהם לייב זיסו; January 25, 1888 – September 6, 1956) was a Romanian writer, political essayist, industrialist, and spokesman of the Jewish Romanian ...
. Igor Mocanu
"Europa, după ploaie (despre ''Avangarda românească în arhivele Siguranței'')"
in ''
Contrafort ''Contrafort'' is a magazine based in Chişinău, Moldova. It was launched in October 1994. ''Contrafort'' promotes a modern critical spirit while focusing on the contemporary literature and culture of the Republic of Moldova. References Ex ...
'', Nr. 5/2008
From 1915 to 1929, he worked as a shop boy at his father's dairy, '' Lăptăria Enache'' (or ''Secolul''), near the
Bucharest Bărăția Bărăția is one of the Roman Catholic churches in Bucharest, Romania. It is located in central Bucharest, on the I. C. Brătianu Boulevard, next to Piața Unirii. Name Its name, used in antiquated Romanian for several Catholic churches, is deriv ...
. His links with radical left-wing circles were documented from late 1921, when ''
Siguranța Siguranța was the generic name for the successive secret police services in the Kingdom of Romania. The official title of the organization changed throughout its history, with names including Directorate of the Police and General Safety ( ro, Di ...
'', the
Romanian Kingdom The Kingdom of Romania ( ro, Regatul României) was a constitutional monarchy that existed in Romania from 13 March ( O.S.) / 25 March 1881 with the crowning of prince Karl of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen as King Carol I (thus beginning the Romanian ...
's secret police, was informed of his possible connections with the terrorist
Max Goldstein Max Goldstein (1898–1924), also known as Coca, was a Romanian revolutionary, variously described as a communist and an anarchist. Born in Bârlad to a Jewish family, he worked as a clerk for two years. He later moved to Bucharest in 1916, w ...
. During the 1920s, Enache's shop became a meeting place for avant-garde poets and artists such as
Victor Brauner Victor Brauner (, also spelled Viktor Brauner; 15 June 1903 – 12 March 1966) was a Romanian painter and sculptor of the surrealist movement. Early life He was born in Piatra Neamț, Romania, the son of a Jewish timber manufacturer who subseque ...
(who painted its exterior), Ion Pop
"Între Gheorghe Dinu și Stephan Roll"
in ''
România Literară ''România Literară'' is a cultural and literary magazine from Romania. In its original edition, it was founded on 1 January 1855 by Vasile Alecsandri and published in Iași until 3 December 1855, when it was suppressed. The new series appeared on ...
'', Nr. 20/2004
Ilarie Voronca Ilarie Voronca (pen name of Eduard Marcus; 31 December 1903, Brăila—8 April 1946, Paris) was a Romanian avant-garde poet and essayist. life and career Voronca was of Jewish ethnicity. In his early years, he was connected with Eugen Lovine ...
, and
Sașa Pană Sașa Pană (; pen name of Alexandru Binder; 8 August 1902—22 August 1981) was a Romanian avant-garde poet, novelist, and short story writer. Biography Born to a Jewish family in Bucharest, he trained as a physician in Iași and Bucharest, b ...
. Inspired by the more senior poet
Ion Vinea Ion Vinea (born Ioan Eugen Iovanaki, sometimes Iovanache; April 17, 1895 – July 6, 1964) was a Romanian poet, novelist, journalist, literary theorist, and political figure. He became active on the modernist scene during his teens—his poetic wo ...
, the group stated its allegiance to
Constructivism Constructivism may refer to: Art and architecture * Constructivism (art), an early 20th-century artistic movement that extols art as a practice for social purposes * Constructivist architecture, an architectural movement in Russia in the 1920s a ...
, and published in Vinea's ''
Contimporanul ''Contimporanul'' (antiquated spelling of the Romanian word for "the Contemporary", singular masculine form) was a Romanian (initially a weekly and later a monthly) avant-garde literary and art magazine, published in Bucharest between June 1922 an ...
''. Together with Voronca and Brauner, Roll edited ''75 H.P.'' magazine, which appeared for one number in October 1924. Later, he and Voronca joined
Scarlat Callimachi Scarlat Callimachi or Calimachi (; nicknamed ''Prinţul Roşu'', "the Red Prince"; September 20, 1896 – June 2, 1975) was a Romanian journalist, essayist, futurist poet, trade unionist, and communist activist, a member of the Callimachi fa ...
's ''
Punct Punct may refer to: * Punct (magazine), Romanian art magazine *PÜNCT ''PÜNCT'' is a two-player strategy board game. It is the sixth release in the ''GIPF'' project of seven abstract strategy games, although it is considered the fifth game in ...
''. He signed his articles with his birth name, and his poetry as ''Stephan Roll'', a pen name he allegedly picked up at random from a Swiss magazine, after noting that he was the only non-pseudonymous writer of his intimate circle. Dinu worked as an editor for ''Integral'' magazine (1925–1928), where he also made his debut as a film critic, alongside
Benjamin Fondane Benjamin Fondane () or Benjamin Fundoianu (; born Benjamin Wechsler, Wexler or Vecsler, first name also Beniamin or Barbu, usually abridged to B.; November 14, 1898 – October 2, 1944) was a Romanian and French poet, critic and existentialist ph ...
and
Ion Călugăru Ion Călugăru (; born Ștrul Leiba Croitoru, Ion Călugăru, Ioan Lăcustă''"Uzina care încearcă să gonească morții". Note nepublicate (1948)'' at thMemoria Digital Library retrieved February 17, 2010 also known as Buium sin Strul-Leiba Croi ...
. While visiting
Câmpina Câmpina () is a city in Prahova County, Romania, north of the county seat Ploiești, located on the main route between Wallachia and Transylvania. Its existence is first attested in a document of 1503. It is situated in the historical region of Mu ...
in 1927, Roll met the aspiring poet
Geo Bogza Geo Bogza (; born Gheorghe Bogza; February 6, 1908 – September 14, 1993) was a Romanian avant-garde theorist, poet, and journalist, known for his left-wing and communist political convictions. As a young man in the interwar period, he was known ...
, who had read his ''Contimporanul'' pieces, and helped him to launch another avant-garde periodical, ''Urmuz'' (to which he also contributed). They were joined in Bucharest by the draftsman
Jules Perahim Jules is the French form of the Latin "Julius" (e.g. Jules César, the French name for Julius Caesar). It is the given name of: People with the name *Jules Aarons (1921–2008), American space physicist and photographer *Jules Abadie (1876–195 ...
, who was aged fifteen at the time, and later also by
Sandu Eliad Sandu may refer to: People Surname *Adrian Sandu (born 1966), Romanian gymnast * Bianca Sandu (born 1992), Romanian footballer *Constantin Sandu (born 1993), Moldovan footballer * Corina Sandu, Romanian-American mechanical engineer * Cristina Sandu ...
and
M. H. Maxy Max Hermann Maxy (also known as M. H. Maxy, born Max Herman; October 26, 1895–July 19, 1971) was a Romanian painter, art professor, scenographer, and professor of German-Jewish descent. Early life and education Maxy was born in Brăila in ...
. Alexandru Mica
"'Mario, ce-ar fi să lași revista și să te apuci de cântat cântece populare?'. Centenar Maria Tănase (25 septembrie 1913 – 22 iunie 1963). Sandu Eliad în dialog cu Alexandru Mica"
in ''Cultura'', Nr. 439, September 2013
From 1928 to 1932, Roll edited the magazine ''
unu ''unu'' (Romanian for "one"; lower case used on purpose) was the name of an avant-garde art and literary magazine, published in Romania from April 1928 to December 1932. Edited by writers Sașa Pană and Moldov, it was dedicated to Dada and Su ...
'', and, according to Pană, was the "quicksilver"-like animator of its literary club. However, he also wrote for ''Meridian'' and '' Facla''. By 1930, he and his ''unu'' colleagues had signed up to international
Surrealism Surrealism is a cultural movement that developed in Europe in the aftermath of World War I in which artists depicted unnerving, illogical scenes and developed techniques to allow the unconscious mind to express itself. Its aim was, according to l ...
, and were especially interested in cultivating its automatic writing technique. As noted by Pană, Roll took this affiliation seriously, spontaneously experimenting with
absurdist humor Surreal humour (also called surreal comedy, absurdist humour, or absurdist comedy) is a form of humour predicated on deliberate violations of causal reasoning, thus producing events and behaviours that are obviously illogical. Portrayals of surrea ...
. He "very seriously" recounted stories of pseudo-zoology to an audience of fellow tram riders, insisting that giraffes owed their elongated necks to a diet of drain spouts. Michäel Finkenthal
"Ce s-a întîmplat cu 'algiștii' în 1933?"
in ''
Apostrof ''Apostrof'' (Romanian language, Romanian for "Apostrophe") is a monthly literary magazine published in Cluj-Napoca, Romania under the Romanian Writers' Union patronage. It was founded in 1990 by Babeş-Bolyai University professor Marta Petreu, who ...
'', Nr. 1/2007
During that episode, ''unu'' hosted outsider literature by Petre Poppescu, a psychiatric inmate, as well as cut-out obituaries from the mainstream press. Also featured were drawings by Brauner with captions by Roll, such as their posthumous homage to Serafina, Roll's she-dog, whom he had trained to lash out at conformist authors who happened to be visiting Enache's dairy. Iulian Andrei Crăciun
"O doamnă cât un secol. Timpul și Margareta"
in ''
Adevărul ''Adevărul'' (; meaning "The Truth", formerly spelled ''Adevĕrul'') is a Romanian daily newspaper, based in Bucharest. Founded in Iași, in 1871, and reestablished in 1888, in Bucharest, it was the main left-wing press venue to be published dur ...
'', March 2, 2012
His defense of the avant-garde led him to publish passionate pieces in defense of Bogza, who was facing trial for his highly erotic collection, ''Jurnal de sex'', a "simulated hymn of voluptuousness and shamelessness, of a sadistic dairy, of spasm and organic inebriation". Mircea Popa
"Geo Bogza, insurgentul"
in '' Familia'', Nr. 11–12/2005


Communist schism

According to scholar
Paul Cernat Paul Cernat (born August 5, 1972 in Bucharest) is a Romanian essayist and literary critic. He has a Ph.D. summa cum laude in philology. Cernat has been a member of the Writers' Union of Romania since 2009. As of 2013, he is lecturer of Romanian li ...
, Roll and Pană publicized their "superficial adhesion" to Surrealism only because it provided expression to their dreams of political revolution. Cernat notes the same for two other ''unu'' writers,
Miron Radu Paraschivescu __NOTOC__ Miron Radu Paraschivescu (; 2 October 1911 – 17 February 1971) was a Romanian poet, essayist, journalist, and translator. Born in Zimnicea, Teleorman County, he went to high school in Ploiești, after which he studied fine arts, firs ...
and
Claude Sernet Claude may refer to: __NOTOC__ People and fictional characters * Claude (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Claude (surname), a list of people * Claude Lorrain (c. 1600–1682), French landscape painter, draughtsman and etcher ...
. Already during the 1930 Bogza trial, Roll drew parallels between the calls for artistic censorship and the rise of fascism. Soon, the ''unu'' group severed its links with Vinea and ''Contimporanul'': the latter was becoming more mainstream, more eclectic, and more tolerant of "reactionary" figures such as
Filippo Tommaso Marinetti Filippo Tommaso Emilio Marinetti (; 22 December 1876 – 2 December 1944) was an Italian poet, editor, art theorist, and founder of the Futurist movement. He was associated with the utopian and Symbolist artistic and literary community Abbaye d ...
,
Sandu Tudor Sandu Tudor (; born Alexandru Al. Teodorescu, known in church records as Brother Agathon, later Daniil Teodorescu, Daniil Sandu Tudor, Daniil de la Rarău; December 22 or December 24, 1896 – November 17, 1962) was a Romanian poet, journalist, th ...
, and
Mihail Sebastian Mihail Sebastian (; born Iosif Mendel Hechter; October 18, 1907 – May 29, 1945) was a Romanian playwright, essayist, journalist and novelist. Life Sebastian was born to a Jewish family in Brăila, the son of Mendel and Clara Hechter. After c ...
. In ''unu'', Vinea was attacked as an "Old Man", his Constructivism denounced as opportunistic and "utilitarian". The group won a victory over Vinea by obtaining foreign support: Roll published in ''
Der Sturm ''Der Sturm'' () was a German List of avant-garde magazines, avant-garde art and literary magazine founded by Herwarth Walden, covering Expressionism, Cubism, Dada and Surrealism, among other artistic movements. It was published between 1910 an ...
'' an introduction to Romanian Surrealism, followed by samples from Bogza, Fondane, Pană, and other poets. Reportedly, the moderate ''Der Sturm'' had to insist that ''unu'' radicals grant it this favor. For his closeness to the banned
Romanian Communist Party The Romanian Communist Party ( ro, Partidul Comunist Român, , PCR) was a communist party in Romania. The successor to the pro-Bolshevik wing of the Socialist Party of Romania, it gave ideological endorsement to a communist revolution that woul ...
(PCdR), Roll was under constant ''Siguranța'' surveillance. Răzvan Voncu
"Integrala Stephan Roll, la o nouă ediție"
in ''
România Literară ''România Literară'' is a cultural and literary magazine from Romania. In its original edition, it was founded on 1 January 1855 by Vasile Alecsandri and published in Iași until 3 December 1855, when it was suppressed. The new series appeared on ...
'', Nr. 1–2/2015
He opened the magazine to PCdR cadres, publishing a book of poems by Ion Vitner, which was swiftly confiscated by the authorities. Roll had a difficult relationship with his nominal protege Bogza, offering him advice that Bogza ignored. The dairy shop went bankrupt and was eventually sold to another Bulgarian family, allegedly because Dinu supplied free meals to destitute clients. Over the following months, Romanian Surrealism suffered a crisis, as the left-wing faction sought to expel the apolitical ones from its ranks. By 1931, Roll was writing in ''unu'' open praises to "robust life" in the Soviet Union, contrasting its
five-year plans Five-year plan may refer to: Nation plans *Five-year plans of the Soviet Union, a series of nationwide centralized economic plans in the Soviet Union *Five-Year Plans of Argentina *Five-Year Plans of Bhutan, a series of national economic developm ...
with the
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
. Soon after, Roll made a decisive contribution to excluding Voronca from the ''unu'' group for publishing a collection with an "official" press and applying for membership in the
Romanian Writers' Society The Romanian Writers' Society ( ro, Societatea Scriitorilor Români) was a professional association based in Bucharest, Romania, that aided the country's writers and promoted their interests. Founded in 1909, it operated for forty years before the e ...
. He then attacked Surrealism itself: "yesterday's metaphysics", he noted in ''unu'', "must be channeled into present-day
scientific materialism Metaphysical naturalism (also called ontological naturalism, philosophical naturalism and antisupernaturalism) is a philosophical worldview which holds that there is nothing but natural elements, principles, and relations of the kind studied by ...
". In his letters of the period, Voronca noted that Roll worked to destroy his and Bogza's reputation, drawing Pană closer to his communist circle. Bogza, meanwhile, sided with Voronca, which led to a definitive split. At the time, Roll also publicized his love for
Marxism Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...
in his letters to the Fondane, reproaching him his "lack of a firm stance" and "refuge in an unreal world". In an early 1933 article for '' Cuvântul Liber'', Roll expressed his support for
Louis Aragon Louis Aragon (, , 3 October 1897 – 24 December 1982) was a French poet who was one of the leading voices of the surrealist movement in France. He co-founded with André Breton and Philippe Soupault the surrealist review ''Littérature''. He wa ...
, calling Surrealism a "false avant-garde" as long as it did not tap into "the anarchic economic structure of society".


Between ''Cuvântul Liber'' and ''Reporter''

In December 1932, Pană put out a final, suicidal, issue of ''unu''. Roll, who remained close friends with the avant-garde reporter
F. Brunea-Fox F. Brunea-Fox (born Filip Brauner; January 18, 1898–June 12, 1977) was a Romanian reporter, journalist and translator. Born into a Jewish family in Roman, his parents were Simcha Brauner and Leia (''née'' Gelbert). He attended high school in ...
, went on to edit the newspapers ''
Adevărul ''Adevărul'' (; meaning "The Truth", formerly spelled ''Adevĕrul'') is a Romanian daily newspaper, based in Bucharest. Founded in Iași, in 1871, and reestablished in 1888, in Bucharest, it was the main left-wing press venue to be published dur ...
'' and '' Dimineața''. From 1934 to 1938, he also put out ''Cuvântul Liber'', signing up to the ''
Amicii URSS ''Amicii URSS'' (Romanian for " heFriends of the Soviet Union"; , occasionally known as ''Prietenii URSS'' (), which carries the same meaning) was a cultural association in interwar Romania, uniting left-wing and anti-fascist intellectuals who adv ...
'' society, which was a front for the PCdR. In his own definition, ''Cuvântul Liber'' stood for "the progressive left during those years of fascist exacerbation". However, Răzvan Voncu claims that, going far beyond the antifascist commitment of his ''unu'' colleagues, Roll established links with the Soviet espionage and acted as their agent of influence. PCdR records show that he was viewed with suspicion, a "fractionist" who supposedly wanted the party leadership purged of its non-Romanian cadres. Ion Pop
"Între revoluție și revelație"
in ''
Tribuna ''Tribuna'' (russian: Трибуна) is a weekly Russian newspaper that focuses largely on industry and the energy sector. History Tribunas published its first publication in July 1969. Until 1990, the newspaper titled the ''Sotsialisticheska ...
'', Nr. 137, May 2008, pp. 9–10
In 1934, following a clampdown on
Iron Guard The Iron Guard ( ro, Garda de Fier) was a Romanian militant revolutionary fascist movement and political party founded in 1927 by Corneliu Zelea Codreanu as the Legion of the Archangel Michael () or the Legionnaire Movement (). It was strongly ...
fascism and the PCdR alike, Roll complained to Fondane that "all publications are now being sieved through military censorship." During that year, he wrote in support of the communist unionists who were on trial for the Grivița railway strike, working with the
International Red Aid International Red Aid (also commonly known by its Russian acronym MOPR ( ru , МОПР, for: ''Междунаро́дная организа́ция по́мощи борца́м револю́ции'' - Mezhdunarodnaya organizatsiya pomoshchi bor ...
and enlisting support from intellectuals such as
Alexandru Ciucurencu Alexandru Ciucurencu (; 27 September 1903 – 27 December 1977) was a Romanian Post-Impressionist painter, and a corresponding member of the Romanian Academy. Born in Tulcea, he studied from 1921 to 1926 at the National School of Fine Arts in Bu ...
and Jószef Meliusz.Beke, pp. 143–144 He also made occasional returns to cultural polemics, issuing a political critique of the ''Contimporanul'' artist
Marcel Janco Marcel Janco (, ; common rendition of the Romanian language, Romanian name Marcel Hermann Iancu ; 24 May 1895 – 21 April 1984) was a Romanian and Israeli visual artist, architect and art theorist. He was the co-inventor of Dadaism and a leading ...
, and, befriending folklorist
Harry Brauner Harry Brauner (24 February 1908 – 11 March 1988) was an ethnomusicologist, composer, and professor of music from Romania. Life Brauner was born in Piatra Neamț into a Jewish family with many children, including his elder brother, Victor, w ...
, was among the first to hear and encourage
Maria Tănase Maria Tănase (; 25 September 1913 – 22 June 1963) was a Romanian singer and actress. Her music ranged from traditional Romanian music to romance, tango, chanson and operetta. Tănase has a similar importance in Romania as Édith Piaf in F ...
, who became Romania's leading recording star. Around 1936, a card-carrying member of the PCdR, Dinu involved himself in rallies supporting jailed communists
Iorgu Iordan Iorgu Iordan (; also known as ''Jorgu Jordan'' or ''Iorgu Jordan''; –September 20, 1986) was a Romanian linguist, philologist, diplomat, journalist, and left-wing agrarian, later communist, politician. The author of works on a large variety of t ...
and
Petre Constantinescu-Iași Petre Constantinescu-Iași (25 November 1892 – 1 December 1977) was a Romanian historian, academic and communist politician. Biography Early life and education Petre Constantinescu was born in the city of Iași, in a modest family of teache ...
.
Pavel Țugui Pavel Țugui (1 November 1921 – 20 September 2021) was a Romanian communist activist and literary historian. Born in Vicovu de Jos, Rădăuți County (now part of Suceava County), he graduated from high school in Cernăuți, after which he becam ...

"George Ivașcu, cronicar de război, la ziarul ''Vremea'' (1941-1944). I"
in ''
România Literară ''România Literară'' is a cultural and literary magazine from Romania. In its original edition, it was founded on 1 January 1855 by Vasile Alecsandri and published in Iași until 3 December 1855, when it was suppressed. The new series appeared on ...
'', Nr. 17/2013
He was also a contributor to N. D. Cocea's ''Era Nouă'', a PCdR-backed review, introducing the public to revolutionary works by
Geo Milev Geo Milev (born Georgi Milev Kasabov; , in Radne mahle – 15 May 1925, in Sofia) was a Bulgarian communist poet, translator and journalist. Geo Milev is perhaps best known for his epic communist poem ''Septemvri'', written during the Bulgar ...
. He later joined Cocea's ''Reporter'' magazine, where he contributed the film column, written from a Marxist and
anti-consumerist Anti-consumerism is a sociopolitical ideology that is opposed to consumerism, the continual buying and consuming of material possessions. Anti-consumerism is concerned with the private actions of business corporations in pursuit of financial and ...
perspective. In 1936, he and Paraschivescu were guest editors at ''
Korunk ''Korunk'' (meaning ''Our Age'' in English) is a Hungarian language monthly cultural-literary-scientific magazine published in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. History and profile ''Korunk'' was founded by László Dienes in Cluj-Napoca in 1926. The magazine ...
'', the Hungaro–Romanian Marxist review, publishing therein his essay on "The Formation of Romanian Intellectuals", and contributions by
Tudor Arghezi Tudor Arghezi (; 21 May 1880 – 14 July 1967) was a Romanian writer, best known for his unique contribution to poetry and children's literature. Born Ion N. Theodorescu in Bucharest, he explained that his pen name was related to ''Argesis'', th ...
,
Belu Zilber Belu Zilber (born Herbert Zilber; October 14, 1901–February 1978) was a Romanian communist activist. Born into a Romanian Jews, Jewish family in Târgu Frumos, Iași County,Dinu C. Giurescu, ''Dicționar biografic de istorie a României'', p. ...
, Ghiță Ionescu, Stoian Gh. Tudor, and
Alexandru Sahia Alexandru Sahia ( pen name of Alexandru Stănescu; October 11, 1908 – August 12, 1937) was a Romanian journalist and short story writer. Biography Born in Mânăstirea, Călărași County, as the son of a small landowner, he was enrolled in th ...
. In 1937, he participated in the campaign for free speech mounted by
Zaharia Stancu Zaharia Stancu (; October 7, 1902 – December 5, 1974) was a Romanian prose writer, novelist, poet, and philosopher. He was also the director of the National Theatre Bucharest, the President of the Writers' Union of Romania, and a titular memb ...
's ''
Azi ''Azi'' (''Today'' in Romanian) is a Romanian daily newspaper published in Bucharest. The paper was started in 1990. Today was also the name of a literary magazine published monthly in Romania, from March 1932 to August 1938, under the directio ...
'' newspaper, defending the avant-garde's Bogza and H. Bonciu against accusations from the nationalist far-right. Also that year, he founded the satirical review ''Pinguinul'', described by ''Siguranța'' as a "camouflaged communist organ". Publishing art by Perahim and Brauner, and texts by Bogza, it was forcefully closed down after putting our four issues. For a while, Roll entertained the idea of relaunching it under the name ''Pitpalacul''. From 1938 to 1940, Roll edited Stancu's ''Lumea Românească'' newspaper, where he continued to press for antifascism, alongside Bogza,
George Macovescu George Macovescu (; 28 May 1913 – 20 March 2002) was a Romanian writer and communist politician who served as the General Secretary of Ministry of Information of Romania and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania. Life and political career H ...
,
Petru Manoliu Petru Virgil Manoliu (; January 28, 1903 – January 29, 1976) was a Romanian novelist, essayist, and newspaper editor. Shaped by philosophical readings, marked by a sense of anxiety and the influence of André Gide, much of his early literary work ...
, and various others. Although connected with the PCdR and accepting its instructions, it was more closely aligned with the
Radical Peasants' Party The Radical Peasants' Party ( ro, Partidul Radical-Țărănesc, PRȚ) was a political party in Romania. History The party was established by Grigore Iunian on 22 November 1933, absorbing the Democratic Peasants' Party–Stere. It won six seats i ...
. During its brief existence, it published Bogza's counterattack on the traditionalists such as
Stelian Popescu Stelian Popescu (February 18, 1874 in Lacu Turcului, Prahova County – 8 March 1954 in Madrid, Spain) was a nationalist Romanian journalist. Biography He was elected to Parliament many times. He was Minister of Justice in the Ionescu cab ...
, exposing pornographic traits in their own press. Roll carried on with his attack on Surrealism and automatism: having already hosted Soviet attacks on
psychoanalysis PsychoanalysisFrom Greek: + . is a set of theories and therapeutic techniques"What is psychoanalysis? Of course, one is supposed to answer that it is many things — a theory, a research method, a therapy, a body of knowledge. In what might b ...
at ''Cuvântul Liber'', he wrote a critical obituary for
Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( , ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies explained as originatin ...
in ''Azi'' (October 1939). It denounced Freudism as the "
opium of the people The opium of the people (or opium of the masses) (german: Opium des Volkes) is a dictum used in reference to religion, derived from a frequently paraphrased statement of German sociologist and economic theorist Karl Marx: "Religion is the opium o ...
", a distraction from "revolutionary ardor".


World War II and after

In 1940, Roll transferred to Mircea Grigorescu's ''
Timpul ''Timpul'' (Romanian for "The Time") is a literary magazine published in Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine t ...
'' daily, his main place of employment to 1947. With the start of World War II fascism and Romania's alliance with
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
, he hid his political commitments. Sometimes with Grigorescu's blessing, he and other crypto-communists (Paraschivescu and Macovescu) published texts that hinted at their support for the Allied Powers. He was in a relationship with Medi Wechlser, a Jewish painter whom he had met ca. 1934. The
racial laws Anti-Jewish laws have been a common occurrence throughout Jewish history. Examples of such laws include special Jewish quotas, Jewish taxes and Disabilities (Jewish), Jewish "disabilities". Some were adopted in the 1930s and 1940s in Nazi Germany ...
prevented them from getting married,Geta Deleanu, "O conversație neconvențională cu pictorița Medi Wechsler Dinu", in ''Ex-Ponto'', Nr. 4/2012, p. 10 and banned Medi from artistic life. During the National Legionary regime, Roll extended his protection to a hunted communist sympathizer,
George Ivașcu George Ivașcu (most common rendition of Gheorghe I. Ivașcu;"Partea I B: Dispozițiuni și publicațiuni care nu au caracter normativ: Deciziuni. Ministerul Informațiilor", in ''Monitorul Oficial'', Issue 112/1947, p. 3980 July 22, 1911 – ...
. In 1943, he became one of the main contributors to Ivașcu's clandestine newspaper, ''
România Liberă ''România liberă'' ("") is a Romanian daily newspaper founded in 1943 and currently based in Bucharest. A newspaper of the same name also existed between 1877 and 1888. History and profile The name ''România liberă'' was first used by a dai ...
'', signaling his closeness to the underground Union of Patriots. According to Dinu's own account, the newspaper was planned in his own home, with support from Medi, Macovescu, and Tereza Ungár-Macovescu. In his forties, Stephan Roll emerged as an important figure among communist writers, and, as noted by critic Ion Pop, "enrolled himself heart and soul in support of propaganda". Shortly after the pro-Allied coup of August 1944, he rallied with the
Romanian Society for Friendship with the Soviet Union Romanian may refer to: *anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania **Romanians, an ethnic group **Romanian language, a Romance language *** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language ** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...
, and became co-editor, with Athanase Joja, Simion Oeriu and
Petre Pandrea Petre is a surname and given name derived from Peter. Notable persons with that name include: People with the given name Petre * Charles Petre Eyre (1817–1902), English Roman Catholic prelate * Ion Petre Stoican (circa 1930–1990), Romanian v ...
, of its '' Veac Nou'' magazine. He wrote enthusiastic reportage pieces of his travels in the Soviet Union, including a chronicle of the
Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...
Spartak Spartak may refer to: In sports *Spartak (sports society), an international fitness and sports society that unites some countries of the former Soviet Union In Russia *FC Spartak Moscow, a football club *FC Spartak Kostroma, a football club *PFC ...
derby and interviews with homecoming Romanian POWs. His stated conclusion was that the "
Soviet man The New Soviet man or New Soviet person (russian: новый советский человек ''novy sovetsky chelovek''), as postulated by the ideologists of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, was an archetype of a person with specific ...
" was "the first-class citizen of the coming world". With Stancu and Paraschivescu, he was a witness for the prosecution at the trial of journalists who had supported fascism, organized by the
Romanian People's Tribunals The two Romanian People's Tribunals ( ro, Tribunalele Poporului), the Bucharest People's Tribunal and the Northern Transylvania People's Tribunal (which sat in Cluj) were set up by the post-World War II government of Romania, overseen by the Allied ...
in 1945. However, there is some indication that Roll secretly resented communist policies, in particular the recruitment drive for party cadres. He is credited as having invented the one-liner: ''Puțini am fost, mulți am rămas'' ("So very few we were, so many of us remain"). Between 1947 and 1956, under the early
communist regime A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state that is administered and governed by a communist party guided by Marxism–Leninism. Marxism–Leninism was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, the Cominte ...
, he edited '' Munca'' newspaper and '' Gazeta Literară'' magazine. From 1956 to 1967, he was secretary of the Newspapermen's Union. In the 1950s, he married Medi, with Pandrea as their godfather. Their marriage was childless. Dinu-Roll published his retrospective volume in 1968, ''Ospățul de aur'' ("Golden Feast"). Prefaced by
Alexandru A. Philippide Alexandru A. Philippide (; April 1, 1900 – February 8, 1979) was a Romanian poet. The son of linguist Alexandru Philippide, he was born in Iași. He studied law, literature, philosophy and political economy at the University of Iași, of ...
, it made young writers aware that the journalist and the avant-garde poet were one and the same man. However, the pieces published here were toned down by communist censorship and by Roll's own reservations, and some were heavily retouched. Following the writer's death in 1974, his widow Medi recovered and copied the original drafts of his poems, which were published by Macovescu and
Eugen Jebeleanu Eugen Jebeleanu (; 24 April 1911 – 21 August 1991) was a Romanian poet, translator, journalist and scholar. Biography He was born in Câmpina, where he attended elementary school. After graduating from high school in Braşov at age 11 in 19 ...
in ''Gazeta Literară''. Ion Pop resumed the editorial work, and in 1986 produced a new edition that was more faithful to the original formats. The project was again taken up after the 1989 Revolution, and, in 2014, Pop ultimately produced an uncensored corpus of Roll's literary contribution. Continuing to paint, Medi made local history when, upon turning 100 in 2008, she exhibited fresh works of art.


Literary work

Roll's poems successively display echoes of the main currents through which the Romanian avant-garde passed. His early "integralist" Constructivism, with its hints of
Futurism Futurism ( it, Futurismo, link=no) was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy, and to a lesser extent in other countries, in the early 20th century. It emphasized dynamism, speed, technology, youth, violence, and objects such ...
and
Dada Dada () or Dadaism was an art movement of the European avant-garde in the early 20th century, with early centres in Zürich, Switzerland, at the Cabaret Voltaire (Zurich), Cabaret Voltaire (in 1916). New York Dada began c. 1915, and after 192 ...
, produced manifesto-like poems, odes to modern life, and samples of
jazz poetry Jazz poetry has been defined as poetry that "demonstrates jazz-like rhythm or the feel of improvisation" and also as poetry that takes jazz music, musicians, or the jazz milieu as its subject. Some critics consider it a distinct genre though others ...
, as well as an homage to the avant-garde cult figure,
Urmuz Urmuz (, pen name of Demetru Dem. Demetrescu-Buzău, also known as Hurmuz or Ciriviș, born Dimitrie Dim. Ionescu-Buzeu; March 17, 1883 – November 23, 1923) was a Romanian writer, lawyer and civil servant, who became a cult hero in Romania's ava ...
. According to Cernat, they are "urban-cosmopolitan poems, abundant in ruptures, arbitrariness, and stridency". Their "dynamic" and "synthetic" style drew attention from the modernist critic
Eugen Lovinescu Eugen Lovinescu (; 31 October 1881 – 16 July 1943) was a Romanian modernist literary historian, literary critic, academic, and novelist, who in 1919 established the ''Sburătorul'' literary club. He was the father of Monica Lovinescu, and the u ...
, who noted that Roll managed to outdo his Futurist masters in "virtuosity". Roll's transition to Surrealism brought his recovery of earlier, more classical, poetic models. At ''unu'', he praised the
Comte de Lautréamont Comte de Lautréamont () was the ''nom de plume'' of Isidore Lucien Ducasse (4 April 1846 – 24 November 1870), a French poet born in Uruguay. His only works, ''Les Chants de Maldoror'' and ''Poésies'', had a major influence on modern arts ...
,
Arthur Rimbaud Jean Nicolas Arthur Rimbaud (, ; 20 October 1854 – 10 November 1891) was a French poet known for his transgressive and surreal themes and for his influence on modern literature and arts, prefiguring surrealism. Born in Charleville, he starte ...
, and
Charles Baudelaire Charles Pierre Baudelaire (, ; ; 9 April 1821 – 31 August 1867) was a French poetry, French poet who also produced notable work as an essayist and art critic. His poems exhibit mastery in the handling of rhyme and rhythm, contain an exoticis ...
. This influence is seen in the 1929 collection ''Poeme în aer liber'' ("Outdoor Poetry") and the prose poems included in the 1930 ''Moartea vie a Eleonorei'' ("Eleonora's Living Death"), both of which came with illustrations by
Victor Brauner Victor Brauner (, also spelled Viktor Brauner; 15 June 1903 – 12 March 1966) was a Romanian painter and sculptor of the surrealist movement. Early life He was born in Piatra Neamț, Romania, the son of a Jewish timber manufacturer who subseque ...
. These more elegiac poems depict the natural universe with sensory freshness, celebrated for a particular ability for conjuring up images, which have playful, ironic and burlesque touches. One of these pieces is ''Diana'', described by Ion Pop as "one of his most beautiful" and as proof of Roll's stylistic debt to
Ilarie Voronca Ilarie Voronca (pen name of Eduard Marcus; 31 December 1903, Brăila—8 April 1946, Paris) was a Romanian avant-garde poet and essayist. life and career Voronca was of Jewish ethnicity. In his early years, he was connected with Eugen Lovine ...
: In its various editions, ''Ospățul de aur'' collects both poems and essays about his generational colleagues, written in the same poetic style and brimming with imagery. The posthumous collection ''Baricada din călimară'' ("A Barricade in the Inkpot", 1979) sheds light on his activity in the 1930s as a radical-left journalist. According to critic Răzvan Voncu, he endures in cultural memory as "a second-shelf author, albeit one whose biography and work contain, in effigy, all defining traits of the interwar avant-garde." Another reviewer, Doris Mironescu, finds him "mediocre" and "entirely unoriginal". Contrarily, Marin Mincu pays homage to Roll as Romania's "most authentic avant-garde writer", finding him superior to poets
Mircea Dinescu Mircea Dinescu (; born November 11, 1950) is a Romanian poet, journalist, and editor. Biography Early life and poetry He was born in Slobozia, the son of Ştefan Dinescu, a metalworker, and Aurelia (born Badea). Dinescu studied at the Faculty ...
and
Ana Blandiana Ana Blandiana (; pen name of Otilia Valeria Coman; born 25 March 1942, in Timișoara) is a Romanian poet, essayist, and political figure. She is considered one of the famous contemporary Romanian authors. She took her name after Blandiana, nea ...
.
Ion Simuț An ion () is an atom or molecule with a net electrical charge. The charge of an electron is considered to be negative by convention and this charge is equal and opposite to the charge of a proton, which is considered to be positive by convent ...

"Cum înaintează poezia"
in ''
România Literară ''România Literară'' is a cultural and literary magazine from Romania. In its original edition, it was founded on 1 January 1855 by Vasile Alecsandri and published in Iași until 3 December 1855, when it was suppressed. The new series appeared on ...
'', Nr. 13/2008


Notes


References

*Raluca Badea, "Tânărul Geo Bogza între jurnal și interviu", in ''Caiete Critice'', Nr. 2/2014, pp. 25–35. *György Beke, ''Fără interpret. Convorbiri cu 56 de scriitori despre relațiile literare româno-maghiare''. Bucharest: Editura Kriterion, 1972. *
Lucian Boia Lucian Boia (born 1 February 1944 in Bucharest) is a Romanian historian. He is mostly known for his debunking of historical myths about Romania, for purging mainstream Romanian history from the deformations due to ideological propaganda. I.e. as ...
, ''Capcanele istoriei. Elita intelectuală românească între 1930 și 1950''. Bucharest:
Humanitas ''Humanitas'' is a Latin noun meaning human nature, civilization, and kindness. It has uses in the Enlightenment, which are discussed below. Classical origins of term The Latin word ''humanitas'' corresponded to the Greek concepts of '' philanthr ...
, 2012. *
George Călinescu George Călinescu (; 19 June 1899, Bucharest – 12 March 1965, Otopeni) was a Romanian literary critic, historian, novelist, academician and journalist, and a writer of classicist and humanist tendencies. He is currently considered one of the mos ...
, ''Istoria literaturii române de la origini pînă în prezent''. Bucharest:
Editura Minerva Editura Minerva is one of the largest publishing houses in Romania. Located in Bucharest, it is known, among other things, for publishing classic Romanian literature, children's books, and scientific books. The company was founded in Bucharest in ...
, 1986. *
Paul Cernat Paul Cernat (born August 5, 1972 in Bucharest) is a Romanian essayist and literary critic. He has a Ph.D. summa cum laude in philology. Cernat has been a member of the Writers' Union of Romania since 2009. As of 2013, he is lecturer of Romanian li ...
, ''Avangarda românească și complexul periferiei: primul val''. Bucharest:
Cartea Românească Cartea Românească ("The Romanian Book") is a publishing house in Bucharest, Romania, founded in 1919. Disestablished by the Communist Romania, communist regime in 1948, it was restored under later communism, in 1970, when it functioned as the off ...
, 2007. *
Adrian Cioroianu Adrian Mihai Cioroianu (born January 5, 1967, Craiova, Romania) is a Romanian historian, politician, journalist, and essayist. A lecturer for the History Department at the University of Bucharest, he is the author of several books dealing with R ...
, **"Lumina vine de la Răsărit. 'Noua imagine' a Uniunii Sovietice în România postbelică, 1944–1947", in Lucian Boia (ed.), ''Miturile comunismului românesc'', pp. 21–68. Bucharest: Editura Nemira, 1998. **''Pe umerii lui Marx. O introducere în istoria comunismului românesc''. Bucharest:
Editura Curtea Veche Editura Curtea Veche (Curtea Veche Publishing House) is a Romanian publishing house with a tradition in editing works of Romanian literature. After the Romanian Revolution of 1989, Curtea Veche started editing more foreign books, such as BBC #REDIR ...
, 2005. * Ovid Crohmălniceanu, ''Literatura română între cele două războaie mondiale'', Vol. I. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1972. *
Serge Fauchereau Serge Fauchereau (born October 31, 1939, in Rochefort-sur-mer) is a French scholar and art curator responsible for the exhibitions ''Paris-New York'', ''Paris-Berlin'', ''Paris-Moscow'', ''Europa-Europa'', ''Futurismo'' and ''Futurismi'', among othe ...
, "Trajectoire graphique de Perahim", in ''Caiete Critice'', Nr. 7/2014, pp. 17–25. *
Tom Sandqvist Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...
, ''Dada East. The Romanians of Cabaret Voltaire''. Cambridge, Massachusetts & London:
MIT Press The MIT Press is a university press affiliated with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts (United States). It was established in 1962. History The MIT Press traces its origins back to 1926 when MIT publish ...
, 2006. {{DEFAULTSORT:Roll, Stephan 1904 births 1974 deaths Romanian poets Futurist writers Surrealist poets Romanian surrealist writers Romanian magazine editors Romanian magazine founders Romanian newspaper editors Romanian columnists Romanian essayists Romanian film critics Romanian humorists Romanian travel writers Romanian communists Communist poets Marxist journalists Romanian propagandists Romanian trade unionists Adevărul editors Contimporanul writers Emigrants from the Ottoman Empire to Romania Romanian people of Bulgarian descent Romanian people of Macedonian descent Romanian people of World War II Censorship in Romania 20th-century essayists People from Florina (regional unit)