"For Art’s Sake: Romanian Interwar Nationalism, Intellectuals, and Their Difficult Work of Memory"
Professional Background
Maria Lupas is a recent Ph.D. recipient in Comparative Literature from Aix-Marseille University in France. She received an M.A. in Latin from Columbia University, and a B.A. in Classical Languages from Georgetown University. For her Tziporah Wiesel Fellowship, Dr. Lupas conducted research on her project, “For Art’s Sake: Romanian Interwar Nationalism, Intellectuals, and Their Difficult Work of Memory.”
Dr. Lupas’ doctoral dissertation explored the theme of 'Art' in the diaries of Mircea Eliade, Eugène Ionesco, Mihail Sebastian, and N. Steinhardt from 1927 through 1987. Her other publications and presentations include “Ionesco contre la littérature mineure? Le cas de la littérature roumaine,” e-LLA (June 2011); “Eliade and Ionesco: Diverging Views in the Romanian Young Generation,” a paper given at the 2009 American Comparative Literature Association (ACLA) Conference at Harvard University; and “Literature and Politics in N. Steinhardt’s Jurnalul fericirii,” a paper given at the 2007 International Conference of the Society for Romanian Studies in Constanţa, Romania. Dr. Lupas has language skills in Romanian, English, French, Ancient Greek, and Latin.
Fellowship Research
During her tenure at the Center, Dr. Lupas researched the literary debates about cultural influences in interwar Romania and the reception of these debates amongst intellectuals after the Second World War. Dr. Lupas utilized the Museum’s Library and Archives Collections. In particular, she made use of the recently digitized collection of 1930’s and 1940’s periodicals from the Library of the Romanian Academy.
Dr. Lupas was in residence at the Mandel Center from September 1, 2011 to May 30, 2012.