Representations of Private Life in Macedonski’s Art. Domestic Death – Attempts to Dissolve Fear Cover Image

Reprezentări ale vieții private în creația macedonskiană. Moartea domestică – încercări de dizolvare a fricii
Representations of Private Life in Macedonski’s Art. Domestic Death – Attempts to Dissolve Fear

Author(s): Otilia Ungureanu
Subject(s): Romanian Literature
Published by: Editura Tracus Arte
Keywords: Alexandru Macedonski; private life; public life; domesticdeath; identity

Summary/Abstract: In this paper we aim to analyze the theme of Death as a representation of private life in Macedonski’s art. This approach takes into account the fact that Macedonski's identity cannot be "fixed" without the socio-cultural context of the era, so sometimes the images of private life will intersect with those of public life. Even if Macedonski's attitude seems to validate the idea of a total commitment to his popularity, his personal life is kept as far as possible from prying eyes. The pleasure of the confession and the temptation of the autobiographical, highlighting the uniqueness of the man or the tragedy of the poet's existence in the world, do not show intimate things or family problems. In addition to the creative projections, I used here a series of confessions of the poet or those close to him, personal documents or letters refrencing his life and opinions. Beyond the cultural and social implications, the phenomenon of Death, remains singular and achieves a unique outline for each passage. The story of Death involves a series of human attitudes, personalized rituals, intimate feelings. The death of his father and grandfather are filtered through Macedonski's eyes of a child, while the funereal rituals and ceremonial characteristic of Bucharest bring this last existential moment closer to the present. There are differences of tone and attitude in shaping the image of domestic Death when the poet shifts his focus from personal to general events. When he talks about his own end, Macedonski refuses the common attitude, resizing Death and subordinating it to the creative will. For Macedonski, Death is something that escapes his power, a phenomenon that cannot be controlled, but can be defied through an optimistic attitude, by eliminating the sequence of the immediate in favor of the immense image of eternity, through lyrical nuances and ironic speech.

  • Issue Year: XX/2024
  • Issue No: 2 (40)
  • Page Range: 147-157
  • Page Count: 11
  • Language: Romanian
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