Donar Munteanu (born Dimitrie Munteanu;Durnea, p. 618Rodica Zafiu, "Munteanu Donar", in Aurel Sasu (ed.), Dicționarul biografic al literaturii române, Vol. II, p. 155. Pitești: Editura Paralela 45, 2004. Mihail Straje, Dicționar de pseudonime, anonime, anagrame, astronime, criptonime ale scriitorilor și publiciștilor români, p. 464. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1973. June 26, 1886 – 1972) was a Romanian poet, representing the provincial wing of Romanian Symbolism, Convorbiri Critice circle and, later, the Gândirea literary movement. He was originally a disciple and close friend of the Symbolist doyen, Alexandru Macedonski; one of the few youngsters to remain by Macedonski's side into the 1910s, he witnessed first-hand the various literary controversies of the Belle Époque. He completed studies in law at the University of Bucharest, and drew public attention as an activist and journalist, supporting political and social causes dear to Romanian nationalism. Generally considered a good, but not great, author, from his thirties and into old age Munteanu belonged to the devotional school of Orthodox-Church writers, producing mostly sonnets.
Professionally, Munteanu was active as a magistrate, a career which allowed him to visit the country; he was involved in quelling socialist agitation at Piatra Neamț and Iași, and was active a military prosecutor in the context of World War I. After the establishment of Greater Romania, Munteanu was sent to Sibiu in Transylvania, earning the admiration of new Romanian citizens. He was then dispatched to Bessarabia, and participated in the literary life of that province. In the late 1930s, he was appointed inspector of penitentiaries, and came to advocate prison reform. He maintained this post upon the proclamation of an authoritarian constitution, but was expelled shortly after; he was instead made a member of the Legislative Council, serving as such for the duration of World War II. He withdrew from public life following the establishment of Romanian communist regime, and, despite a resurgence of interest in the late 1960s (when he published memoirs of his Macedonskain youth), remains largely forgotten.
Macedonskian debut Born in Răcari, Dâmbovița County, Munteanu was of Transylvanian roots—his paternal family originated in the Apuseni Mountains. His father Ilie, a schoolteacher, was a first-generation immigrant to the Kingdom of Romania.Călinescu, p. 1023 In 1901, Dimitrie-Donar had enlisted at Gheorghe Lazăr National College in Bucharest, and had completed (but not yet published) a notebook of poems, as well as translations from Victor Hugo. One of his schoolmates encouraged him to have these reviewed by the senior poet Alexandru Macedonski, who had established a Symbolist literary circle, Literatorul (Munteanu recalls having already met Macedonski in his childhood, though he could not remember when and under what circumstances).Munteanu, p. 7 He approached the Symbolist doyen "at sunset, after a hot day in late August ", joining him on a walk down Știrbei Vodă Street. Macedonski invited him into his residence, which was then located on Sculpturii Street, Cotroceni.Munteanu, pp. 7–8
Munteanu soon began attending regularly. As he noted in his old-age memoirs, in 1901 Macedonski only had one other disciple, Constantin Cantilli (who seemed to be going through a "depressive state"); the circle had lost Tudor Arghezi (who had taken monastic orders), Ștefan Petică (who was facing extreme poverty, and therefore had to take up various kinds of employment), and Cincinat Pavelescu (who was working as a magistrate in the provinces).Munteanu, pp. 8–9 Munteanu recalls that other inductees were being considered, including a very young Vasile Voiculescu—who, although warmly invited by Macedonski, never appeared at the Sculpturii Street salon.Munteanu, p. 9 Scholar Victor Durnea notes that Munteanu only became a Macedonskian by chance, since his "origin, temperament and experiences" made him resemble the traditionalists at Sămănătorul. Durnea believes that Munteanu was never a Symbolist of any kind, and includes him among the Neo-romantics; he also observes that Munteanu's pastoral poems are directly modeled on traditionalist works by George Coșbuc. Macedonski held Munteanu in high esteem as "a lofty poet"Munteanu, p. 14 and "incomparable maestro", but, according to literary historian George Călinescu, this should not dissuade from the fact that Munteanu was a "minuscule" voice in literature.Călinescu, p. 523
Munteanu made his publishing debut in Macedonski's Forța Morală on October 28, 1901, with a lyrical eulogy honoring scholar V. A. Urechia.Munteanu, p. 10 He also contributed several sketch stories, including one which showed destitute and overworked peasants immolating their exploitative landlord. Though he later acknowledged that the work was "utterly unremarkable", it was well-liked by a leftist theoretician, Panait Mușoiu, who reprinted it in his own journal, Revista Ideei, and who later kept himself informed about Munteanu's evolution as a writer. Having officially joined Literatorul, Munteanu had to satisfy Macedonski's particular and contradictory demands from his pupils. He took up cycling (with Cantilli as his guide) and tobacco-smoking; a close friend of the family, he briefly tutored Macedonski's youngest son, Dinu.Munteanu, pp. 9–10 Meanwhile, he completed his secondary education: biographers indicate that he was a graduate of Saint Sava National College, though he himself confessed to have withdrawn from regular school, and to have passed his final exams "in private". He had been pushed to do so by Macedonski, who believed that aspiring poets should be unrestrained and unschooled.
During his period with Forța Morală, Munteanu was a personal witness to the feud between his master and the satirist Ion Luca Caragiale, which ended with the former's disgrace and near-complete isolation. During the height of this conflict, he attended a conference at which the sickly Macedonki was being heckled by a crowd of Caragiale supporters, including Alexandru Cazaban.Munteanu, p. 11 Munteanu's own work was hosted in Caion's Românul Literar, though he came to resent Caion, who had stoked the dispute by resorting to a literary forgery, without informing Macedonski of this ruse. Munteanu also noted that, in the midst of the scandal, and while beset by financial troubles that prevented him from properly heating his home, Macedonski still managed to create his "masterpiece" poem, the "unique work" known as Noaptea de decemvrie.Munteanu, pp. 10–11 He remained in contact with the Macedonskis after they had moved to a "less presentable home" on Precupeții Vechi Street (near Obor). He was present at Literatorul as the circle acquired another young affiliate, George Bacovia—whom Munteanu himself recognized as a more celebrated and impactful writer.Munteanu, pp. 11–12
Munteanu eventually enlisted at Bucharest University's faculty of law, taking his degree in 1909. He was a member of the Pahuci student fraternity, inviting Macedonski to its sessions.Nicolae Baboeanu, Dedesubturi..., pp. 29–31. Bucharest: Poporul, 1910 In 1904, he published the Symbolist magazine Pleiada, which ran for somewhere between two and four editions,Durnea, p. 618; Munteanu, p. 12 usually signing his pieces there as Donar. He later admitted to having lied about it being put out by a committee, reporting that he had entirely self-published the magazine, and that he could not even remember where the money came from.Munteanu, p. 12 During its brief existence, Pleiada maintained a cult of the early-19th-century poet Alexandru Depărățeanu. This impressed a local politician, Constantin Dissescu, who was active in Depărățeanu's Teleorman County; upon Dissescu's invitation, Munteanu, Macedonski and Mircea Demetriad traveled to Trivalea, where they hosted a literary festivity honoring Depărățeanu.Munteanu, pp. 12–13
Convorbiri Critice period and World War I By October 1905, "Munteanu-Donar, a law student, poet and journalist" was active on the youth side of the Romanian nationalist movement. At that stage, Cultul Artei society hosted his lectures on the Orthodox church and its role in education; he asserted that these factors had historically shielded "our nation from the [foreign] torrent that had been unleashed on it"."Șezătoarea societ. 'Cultul Artei'", in Dimineața, October 25, 1905, p. 3 In July 1906, at a peak in the Macedonian Struggle—in which pro-Romanian Aromanians had found themselves entangled in a violent conflict with Greek activists—Munteanu appeared at a student rally, calling for a Romanian mobilization in support of the Aromanians, alleging that these risked being exterminated.Mi., "Meetingul antigrecesc din Capitală", in Dimineața, July 7, 1906, pp. 2–3 In August, he was leading the students' delegation to the Bucharest Jubilee Exhibit, wherein he welcomed similar delegations of Romanians from Transylvania and the Duchy of Bukovina, as well as Aromanian envoys."Bucovineniĭ și Ardeleniĭ Oaspețiĭ Capitaleĭ", in Dimineața, August 27, 1906, p. 2
A regular at Mihail Dragomirescu's Convorbiri Critice magazine (from 1907), Munteanu was introduced by his new mentor an "idyllic poet from the Macedonski school". Dragomirescu also proposed that his piece Țiganii ("The Gipsies") should be considered "a descriptive, colorful, masterpiece".Mihail Dragomirescu, Semănătorism, poporanism, criticism, p. 150. Bucharest: Editura Noului Institut de Literatură, 1934 Published in May 1907, the poem was explained by Donar himself as a sample of "my wandering soul."Nicolae Scurtu, "Încă un poet dâmbovițean – Donar Munteanu", in Litere, Issue 4/2007 Munteanu was also co-opted by Ion Minulescu at the radical Symbolist review, Revista Celor L'alți. His contribution there was noted by the anti-Symbolist traditionalist Nicolae Iorga, who believed Munteanu to be "a good versifier".Nicolae Iorga, Istoria literaturii românești contemporane. II: În căutarea fondului (1890-1934), pp. 148–149. Bucharest: Editura Adevĕrul, 1934 The episode strained relations between Dragomirescu and Munteanu, since the former was being attacked by Minulescu. In April 1908, Munteanu wrote to apologize, and noted that, by then, he had already decided to end his collaboration with Revista Celor L'alți. In May, he joined the Convorbiri Critice editorial committee, which, by then, also comprised Pavelescu, I. Dragoslav, Emil Gârleanu, A. de Herz, Eugen Lovinescu, Anastasie Mândru, and Corneliu Moldovanu.George Baiculescu, Georgeta Răduică, Neonila Onofrei, Publicațiile periodice românești (ziare, gazete, reviste). Vol. II: Catalog alfabetic 1907–1918. Supliment 1790–1906, p. 138. Bucharest: Editura Academiei, 1969 The group's editorial cartoonist was Iosif Iser, who once drew and published Munteanu's portrait.Rodion, "Oameni și lucruri. Apologia idealului", in Opinia, May 15, 1914, p. 1