Romania
Distribution by the University of Chicago Press only to customers in the USA and Canada. Customers elsewhere should visit the UK website of Reaktion Books.
Distributed for Reaktion Books
240 pages
|
6 x 9
Romania occupies a unique position on the map of Eastern Europe. It is a country that presents many paradoxes. In this book the preeminent Romanian historian Lucian Boia examines his native land's development from the Middle Ages to modern times, delineating its culture, history, language, politics and ethnic identity. Boia introduces us to the heroes and myths of Romanian history, and provides an enlightening account of the history of Romanian Communism. He shows how modernization and the influence of the West have divided the nation - town versus country, nationalists versus pro-European factions, the elite versus the masses - and argues that Romania today is in chronic difficulty as it tries to fix its identity and envision a future for itself.
The book concludes with a tour of Bucharest, whose houses, streets and public monuments embody Romania's traditional values and contemporary contradictions.
The book concludes with a tour of Bucharest, whose houses, streets and public monuments embody Romania's traditional values and contemporary contradictions.
“Lucian Boia has written a wonderful book about contemporary Romania. Students wishing to learn more about this often neglected country will find it a useful aid to critical understanding--one unfettered by the more common preoccupation with potted histories and dry trade statistics. Scholars will value it for its theoretically sophisticated approach and its respect for its readership.”--Geography
“This is a well-written, well-translated, and well-illustrated book for those basically ignorant about Romania, but eager to learn about the country. Boia has written much more than a tourist guide. . . . The intricacies and peculiarities of quasi-nationalistic Romanian communism and the postcommunist period under mostly communist leadership are ably explained.”--Choice
Contents
Introduction
I. A Look at the Map
II. An Island of Latinity
III. How Romania was Created
IV. Romanian Communism
V. Between the Past and the Future
VI. Romanians and Foreigners
VII. Who's Who in the Romanian Pantheon
VIII. A Walk through Bucharest
Epilogue
References
A Note on Romanian Pronunciation and Spelling
Photographic Acknowledgements
Index of Personal Names
Index of Place Names
I. A Look at the Map
II. An Island of Latinity
III. How Romania was Created
IV. Romanian Communism
V. Between the Past and the Future
VI. Romanians and Foreigners
VII. Who's Who in the Romanian Pantheon
VIII. A Walk through Bucharest
Epilogue
References
A Note on Romanian Pronunciation and Spelling
Photographic Acknowledgements
Index of Personal Names
Index of Place Names
For more information, or to order this book, please visit http://www.press.uchicago.edu
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History: European History
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