A NEWFOUND SOCIAL RELEVANCE FOR LITERATURE? THE CASE OF ROMANIAN POSTCOMMUNIST FICTION

Abstract

Having in mind the recen t debates on literary legitimacy, my aim is a brief discussion of the social relevance of literature before and after the fall of communism in Romania. The first part of the paper offers a survey of the critical role of literary fiction in the communist so cieties from Eastern Europe, with a particular look at the Romanian case. The second part aims to investigate if and by which means post - communist Romanian literature regains its social relevance. A brief look at novels written in the 2000s by a young gene ration of writers highlights their concern with the transition period or the 1989 revolution, offering a polemical, though fictional point of view on post - communist society and recent history. The conclusion states that these authors deconstruct collective narratives and clichés drawing attention to the way in which they are embedded in the discourses which define the public sphere.

Keywords

• Literary legitimacy
• social relevance
• post - communism
• Romanian fiction