Almost none of Romania’s celebrity intellectuals have yet been translated into English (presumably, the fact that most of them – Eminescu, Iorga, Eliade, Cioran, Țuțea – are reactionaries or fascists of some stripe or another played a role in that). Hopefully, this may yet change, at least with respect to Țuțea.
This post features a short introduction to Țuțea’s thought by the journalist Craig Willy [Twitter; 2011 interview], followed by a translation of his impressions of Russians. Perhaps there may be more to come. In the meantime, you can follow Craig’s translations of Țuțea’s quotes on Twitter.
Obviously, I largely disagree with Țuțea’s characterizations about Russians. The USSR existed to serve its own Bolshevik ideology, not the Russian people; and the Gaullist dream of a Europe from the Atlantic to Vladivostok has faded away, even though the Marxism now is largely cultural, and mostly on the western side of the continent (one wonders what Țuțea would have made of SJWs). However, as Craig points out, it was a very reasonable assessment in the context of that time, and remains useful in showing how sovok behavior was perceived and associated with Russians amongst nationalist East European intellectuals – a matter of not inconsiderable importance now that the entire region is trending right.
Craig Willy: Țuțea 101
Petre Țuțea was a Romanian anti-communist dissident, patriot, and Christian philosopher. Following the rise of the communist regime in 1948, he was imprisoned for a total of 13 years. Țuțea was closely surveilled and prevented from publishing even when he was let free. He managed to outlive communism, only passing away in 1991, at the age of 89. Between the revolution and his death, Țuțea became a popular speaker, known for his gloriously frank, rambling discussions. You can get a sense of his way of being by the stories of his “Socratic” trolling of his captors and of his way of speaking in this video dialogue with his friend, the nihilist philosopher Emil Cioran.
A collection of 322 sayings from Țuțea’s conversations [download] was published shortly after his death, a book which was recently re-released by the highbrow publisher Humanitas, and which appears prominently in Romanian bookstores today. Țuțea is disconcertingly frank, on equality, nationalism, anti-Semitism, totalitarianism, and many other topics. His words testify to the intensity of his Christian faith, a kind of mental transformation, which gave him the strength to tell the truth despite living under a system founded on lies. While everyone else submitted or went into exile, Țuțea could live by his own timeless ethic, based on Plato, Aristotle, and the Bible, rather than the changing fashions of the day.
The following is Țuțea’s entry on “Russians.” Note that this would have been spoken between 1989 and 1991. Romania’s orientation towards Russia has tended to fluctuate with geopolitics. The Romanian people are culturally very “Eastern” and, like many Orthodox nations, are actually moderately pro-Russian by sentiment. The young, Westernized liberal elite is however very anti-Russian and the Romanian government, typically run by crooked, often brutal sovok-types, will do just about anything to enjoy security and gibs from the United States and the European Union.
Russians
A Russian diplomat tried to explain to me that Moscow draws its roots from Rome. I told him that this is not possible, because any Romans would have frozen solid in Moscow. I was always very hostile to the Russians, because they were hostile to us. I remember being told, in a conversation among diplomats, that the Russians are a messianic people. I told them that this was not the case: the Russians are a populous nation with a messianic audacity, who also took on Byzantium, considering themselves to be the heirs of Byzantine splendor.
The Russians have an undefinable kind of humanity. I have been in Moscow and I cannot not say that they are tyrannical individuals, although they have practiced tyranny. On the other hand, I don’t think I have met any Russian who was normal; that I can only explain through the fact they probably interbred with Tartars.
What do the Russians think? That Hitler was put down, but that they are vaccinated? They entered territory full of mines: in the planetary area of the Anglo-Saxon interests, of those merchants. If you get in the way of an Anglo-Saxon car, that means war. And what do the Ruskies think? That they would tolerate you staying in their way? They have learned, the Anglo-Saxons, to be the masters of the world – and the Ruskies say nyet! So you know what . . . let’s fight!
I once compared Russians to cows who make 25 kilos of milk per day and then defecate in the jug.
The Russians are just as imperialist as Hitler’s Germany. But they do not say it openly. The Russians are more perfidious. When they occupy you, they also declare you that you agree, they say that you are progressive. But when you fight back, they say you are fascist and reactionary. The Russians are more politically skilled than the Germans. Proof of this is that they managed to make this great red lie, this shame which is Bolshevism, into a global superpower, and to impose Bolshevism’s status as a superpower on the United States.
A Russian asked me, years ago: Mister Țuțea, how do you explain that we Russians offer our hand to Europe and they systematically refuse? Very simple, you have a mental cancer, which is called the Marxist-Leninist ideological cancer. Throw this cancer into the garbage and Europe will not only salute you, it will recognize you as an equal partner. And then Europe will stretch from the Atlantic to Vladivostok and America will be the second Albania…
The Russian is contraindicated to thinking just as syphilis is to the nervous system. I made this statement – which I later retracted (so as to not have people believe that I was talking about all Russians, the great Russian people) – referring to Gorbachev. Because he said: the economic situation of the Union – so after 70 years of Marxism-Leninism – is catastrophic. Period. And then he opted for Leninism! So, for the corpse in the Red Square, who created this disaster…
Cioran is quite famous in the English speaking world and I believe all his works have been translated (didn’t he write in French?).
Eliade also.
So 2 Romanian intellectuals are quite popular among English speakers.
Was Cioran a fascist or reactionary? He was an extreme defeatist/pessimist/mystic – basically, the kind of silly pessimism of the mystic who sees clearly the pointlessness of life but is still trapped in European categories of purpose and so becomes a “nihilist” – rather than an Immortal riding the wind.
A spoilt mystic, I call him.
This sort of frank language about the cow can only come from someone born in a village. I think it’s great – scatology aside. It is the antithesis of PC, and probably comes in part from being familiar with the way animals are bred and being removed from controlled networks of speech such as universities.
Yeah, well, see how that worked out.
As you say; things turned out….erm.. a bit different. Still interesting to read nonetheless. If this was consensus amongst eastern European non-commie intellectuals at the time then, I guess, it might help to explain Russian behaviour in the early 90s which, with hindsight, was unimaginably naive.
What it highlights are the unfortunate limits of nationalist thinking in practise. The problem, as always, is that nationalism is convincing in opposition to global ideologies. But it often turns into petty mutual hostilities obsessed with fighting competing nationalisms. That gives an advantage to the global ideologies from Marxism to neo-liberalism, and the endless universalist religions. This is especially true with the rise of women influence, they dislike the unpleasantness of mutual attacks and will prefer to ‘catholicize‘ the society instead. And we end up with a universalist, elite-driven, culturally shallow mush. Also, what a weird worldview people had around 1990, I am guessing too much suffering, too much life, too many experiences.
Thank you Mr. Tutea, but the cow story was good.
That rather contradicts what comes later.
Doesn’t sound like a profound thinker tbh.
Fuck anti-commies.
Eliade was at U. of Chicago. There was this strange case of murder at U of Chicago. Possibly linked to Ceausescu Seguridad.
Saul Bellow had Romanian wife and also was at U. of Chicago.
Banal, stupid, shallow neoliberalism.txt second-hand copy.
If I wanted some hand-me-down neocon blathering I’d just go to the source in the USA.
Not really very complimentary of the Russian psyche, at least as far as the 20th century is concerned. I wonder what he would think of 21st century Russians – I suspect even worse.
Why? Russian aims today are rather more modest than those of the Soviet Union.
Right, Romanians were not so absent from the cultural life of English speakers, as Anatoly says.
An interesting people. I must visit someday.
It seems that Cioran and Eliade have many English translations on Amazon.
I was in the Barnes and Nobles in Union Square over the weekend and there is a whole row of translations of Cioran. He’s quite popular among the college set.
Don’t suppose it matters, eastern European nationalists have kind of bifurcated between the Viktor Orban nationalist types and the Radek Sikorski euro-atlatticist types. The former are quite happy that communism collapsed, to be independent of Russia and have moved on, the latter are extremely vindictive and use Russia as a scapegoat whenever they dont get their own way. There’s also a third type; the nihilistic, corrupt, amoral soviet-elite type; Dukanovic, Milocovic, poroshenko et al. If this guy had lived on for a few more decades, he could’ve fallen into any of the first two camps, but probably not the third.
Well, I can’t imagine that he’d be very appreciative of Russian meddling in Molodava and the support of the ‘Trans-Dniester Republic’. I’m pretty sure that most Romanian nationalists feel that Moldova should be a part of a Greater Romania. Russia is the most visible antagonist in any such plans.
Ok, that makes sense, thanks for the answer.
This could swing both ways; without Transdnister Moldova would’ve been far less dysfunctional. The fact that it’s in such a bad state makes it easier for Romanians to make the case to just absorb it. Especially when the non ethnically Romanian population is within an area defined by a clear, natural border. Without the EU/NATO that might’ve already happened.
According to Wikipedia (ok, not the most reliable source) Tutea was a sympathizer of the Iron Guard, Romania’s weird variant of fascism, in the late 1930s. I have my doubts whether he would be Atlanticist today.
Is it just me, or does anyone else find absolutely nothing insightful, intelligent or informed in any of these sentences?
Our resident Romanian Seraphim is vastly superior to this thinker.
@AK
Would you look at that, lol:
https://www.humblebundle.com/books/get-the-vote-out-books?hmb_source=navbar&hmb_medium=product_tile&hmb_campaign=tile_index_8
All proceeds to ACLU goyim!
It’s probably reflecting more the fact America has some very good bookshops. If you judged from bookshops only, you would imagine the American intelligensia was more advanced than European equivalents.
For example, I was visiting the major bookshops in Madrid (trying to find some Spanish book to buy, which doesn’t exist in other countries), and it is amazing how limited selection actually is. In documentary literature, Madrid bookshops are mainly only translations of recent American or British books.* Los Angeles (!) has more interesting book selections (it’s kind of the complete inversion of stereotypes).
You missed the third Romanian-Parisian writer, Ionesco.
We’ll need to find out how concerned he was with the Bessarabian issue. Unfortunately, there was no entry for Basarabia in my copy of the book.
But you are correct.
“Based” nationalists such as Orban have no particular reason (apart from historical grudges) to dislike Russia. In Romania, both the based and Euro-Atlantic nationalists have cause to dislike it.
https://www.unz.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/romania-452.jpg
Stereotypes held mainly by snooty European SWPLs and almost nobody else in the world.
Anglo civilization dominates the planet, and the US is its center. Everywhere else is a provincial backwater.
Lol I was just thinking this, sadly, when skimming German Reader’s comments (avoiding everyone else’s comments) under your book review post.
I was imagining he was going to present the idiosyncratic “Heidelberg School” viewpoint on the decline of the Roman Empire. But he, disappointing, says to everyone to read a book by an English historian.
lol.
Best thing to read about late antiquity imo is still Gibbon’s Decline and fall, in the edition by J.B. Bury. It’s surprisingly funny at times.
I see Romania squarely within the EU and NATO too. Need I remind you that it’s Russia and not the US or the EU that is the greatest obstacle to the unificaton of the three medieval principalites of Wallachia, Transylvania and Moldovia (well I guess Hungary too, but the Hungarians are ornery about a lot of issues with their neighbors as of late, all 8,000,000 of them). 🙂
what is the “ideosyncratic ‘Heidelberg School’ viewpoint?”
all I find is an Aussie (after a town in Victoria) art movement…
Sadly, something which is only in my imagination.
Returning to Karlin’s comment.
Even with so much translation into English of other countries’ writers – I have some kind of doubt they completely understand texts. Mistranslation is very common, but also lack of understanding of the cultures which produced the books.
And then now, we all became lazy with our own publishing, and started populating large proportion of our bookshops with translations of American/English books into our languages (where we can assimilate the American/English view even of our own countries).
It’s surreal when you see the history books in the bookshops of a country you visit, are translations of American/British historians writing about that country (so in the history section of Madrid bookshops, significant proportion of history books about Spain are translations of British/American books about Spain).
If so that’s rather sad, as the bookstores in NYC are pretty average, especially compared to what in my dreams a bookstore should be like.
Several bookstores closed down in the past few years here, also.
I always thought the bookstores in London would be far better than here. After all America is an anti-intellectual country.
Is there really that much of this? As you write yourself, it seems to be mostly the other way round.
Fundamentally we’re all living in the shadow of America. Even right-wing nationalists in Europe are no exception (at least judging from their Twitter accounts)…usually they’re better informed about the latest idiotic drama in the US like the Kavanaugh hearings than about what’s going on in the countries next to their own.
“… Throw this cancer into the garbage and Europe will not only salute you, it will recognize you as an equal partner.”
Another proof that “文人误国” (intellectuals ruin a nation).
The last emperor of Ming dynasty said before he hanged himself, “文人皆可杀 (Intellectuals should all be killed).”
When “man of letters” give you advice on politics, tell them to fu#k off….
It’s sad to admit it but in the long run the only way to remain competitive is to Anglicize. The native languages will become patriotic patois.
The Swedes, Danes, Dutch, etc. were merely ahead of the game.
China is perhaps the only country/civilization with enough demographic-potential economic weight to create an interesting world out of its own language. And it mandates a massive decline in the West (which admittedly may just well happen).
You can start with NYC where you will find many good Romanian surrealist poets among other things.
Just really well-written overall.
Its a pity that he didn’t live to see the modern Internet, he would be a great shitposter.
Gibbon needs grandeur and sweep. He would be like an Establishment-friendly Moldbug. Johnson, on the other hand…
What about Macaulay?
Even what Anglos translate usually ideologically conforms with their own views.
This laziness and conformation annoys me. Also very few bother to translate new works in other European languages.
Not only is alienating to look at one’s own society from the POV of a foreign culture/ideology, but we will never be independent as long this mental reliance on the Anglos lasts.
Europeans are like children depending on a very deranged adult.
Nobody forced the Romanians to join NATO, clearly they are not interested in merging with their estranged part of Moldavia. They (the Romanian elite) are more interested in the gibs of Brussels.
Much like Russia is not interested in 20 million poor people in Novorossiya. Gas contracts with Europe, and titanium ore that Russia buys from Ukraine, are clearly more important to the Kremlin than ethnic Russians.
For some reason, modern East European governments, be that Russia, Ukraine, or Romania do not quite listen or adjust their policy to placate the imperialistic megalomania of crazy nationalists.
Romania could have stayed out of NATO until the resolution of Transnistria conflict. Also note the unwillingness of Moldova to recognise the independence of Transnistria. It is something that would solve the issue forever, it was possible with South Sudan or Eritrea so why isn’t there will in Moldova to do the same?
Clearly, Romania is not very eager to merge with one of the poorest regions of Europe.
Why? Communism sucks hairy arse!
I have some books by Eliade. And I don’t any Romanian.
Europeans have shown their true nature and attitude to Russia when they failed to notice the heavily anti-ethnic Russian character of the Euromaidan, and chastised Russia for saving Crimea from the fate of Odessan protesters, and Donbass villages. Also, Russia grudgingly helping Donbass republics survive agains murderous Kiev regime is somehow bad…
If Europeans chastise Russians for defending themselves, what should Russians be expecting from Europe?
Philosophy, the ramblings of the mentally unstable. Never understood the fascination some continental countries have for intellectuals. Anglo countries used to be blessedly free of such talmuldic hair splitting but unfortunately decline has set in during the last century.
Never heard of any of them, they should have done something useful with their lives.
thx. I thought there existed some unorthodox and funny theory (that went past me) by that name because G_R lolled at the phrase…
I guess that the Romanians just don’t trust those pesky Russkies (I wonder why?). Didn’t they allow NATO (or the US on its own) to put-up several missile stations on its territory directed at Russia not too long ago?…
‘Defending themselves’ by invading a neighboring state and ripping off a chunk of territory has been the indefensible cornerstone of thieves since the beginning of time. Taking this kind of logic to its final conclusion, Russia needs to conquer the whole world in order to defend itself, or at least as much as possible. And so on and on we go…
Buying your tickets early this year to witness the Rusyn (Ukrainian) festival in Svidnik, Slovakia this year? 🙂
It seems to be the future, sadly.
Yet –
Spanish has almost 500 million speakers/readers.
Russian – almost 250 million speakers/readers, with Russia composing 146 million citizens, almost completely literate population.
In the first part of the 19th century, Europe’s total population was only around 200 million, most of these people illiterate. A much smaller (literate) fraction of 200 million people, could produce most of the world’s thinking and scholarship. In Russia in 2018 – registered citizens, are 73% the number of what was the complete, mostly illiterate population of whole of Europe of 1900.
So it should surely not be demographic inevitability, that native publishing and writing output becomes smaller (even as a total, let alone in per capita), and proportion of intellectual life slowly if steadily outsourced to larger share of English/American authors.
Ironically, in the Spanish situation, I think the translated English-to-Spanish books will be less critical and more romanticizing than the real Spanish ones.
I only have two books in Spanish (so although small sample). I bought in Spain from real Spanish professors (not translated). One was about the whole overview of Spain from the pre-historic epoch and the other is about Latin America.
I could read a few chapters, without perfect comprehension. The overview of Spain is very critical and anti-romantic about the past, and very optimistic about the future. It’s seems like an inversion of the anglosaxon historian style (usually romantic about the past, but critical of the future).
In this book, author is writing about from the 1980s like it is a golden age and renaissance. The whole spirit and style of writing, is very culturally unusual to the anglosaxon writing about Spain. If you learn any ability to read a language, it is much more interesting to take home a book written by native authors when you visit a country like Spain.
They have only allowed Russian missiles to aim at their asses… But I guess cushy places in Brussels are worth it.
Trust Russkies or not, you can’t act in a way that creates mistrust which the Romanians are doing.
I have seen what happened to protesters in Odessa, Mariupol, and what the Ukrainian army does in Donbass every day.
There are Russians in Ukraine that required defence, Russia did its best. Ukraine is ruled by a usurper government, with radical nationalists attacking people, so tough luck…
Guys like you and me are lucky, though. We can sit on the sidelines and cheer on our favorite team based on opposing brands of propaganda. We also can idle away our time at colorful ethnic festivals – since you live so close to Svidnik, maybe I’ll see you there this year at the Rusyn/Ukrainian* festival, the largest and best attended festival of its kind in Slovakia. 🙂
*Rusyns are a Ukrainian sub-group, similar to Hutsuls, Lemkos, Boykos and Polishchuks. An analogous comparison would be the Moravians found in both the Czech and Slovak republics, although at 1,000,000 they dwarf the numbers of the aforementioned groups by far.
Three words. Hume. Berkeley. Locke.
You don’t realise that the Czechs have conquered Moravia and assimilated over one millennium.
“Ukrainian” is a very modern designation that aims to create a nation in the formerly Polish territories of Rus’, with the addition of the Caspian steppe, which was built by the Russians. How successful it will be is still uncertain. The Czechs once had an empire of their own stretching all the way to Transcarpathia, and it ended in failure and readjustment.
Ukraine may as well follow the same path…
Hell, the Euro-muppets won’t even defend their own countries!
So far, the ‘Rusyns’ of Transcarpathia, as their kinfolk throughout the rest of Ukraine that also were once called ‘Rusyns’, seem quite content in being called Ukrainians. I’m quite excited to see this nation complete solidifying all of the gains that it’s been making in the 20th century and now into the 21st. Admittedly, it’s been a hard row, especially with Russian nationalists (imperialists?) trying to derail the whole process. On the other hand, it’s often commented upon how Russia’s latest military incursions into Ukraine have served as a strong catalyst to bind the Ukrainian nation together. Russian nation building beyond its core territories seems to be quite a clumsy proposition. Worldwide, Russian language projects and cultural aspirations seem to have taken a real beating. I guess that nobody really likes a bully.
(((surrealists))) ftw.
Why not add Norman Manea, Roth’s passive partner, who teaches English writing at Bard, despite having obvious problems with English language?
Romanian-Americans either belong to some radical cult – Jewish or Christian -, or starve to death. It’s only fair since life in Romania does not prepare you for life in America.
Romania was somewhat allied with USSR between 1945 and 1989. What difference did it make?
Also, the rump Moldovan Republic cannot give away Transdniester, since the loss of Budjak and Northern Bukowina has halved their lands already. If they give up now, what will stop the Gagauz from seceding?
Fair question.