BOOK REVIEW: LAURA PAVEL, “PERSONAJE ALE TEORIEI, FIINȚE ALE FICȚIUNII”, IAȘI, INSTITUTUL EUROPEAN, 2021, 338 P.

Abstract

Laura Pavel’s Characters of Theory, Beings of Fiction is a feat of post-critical thought, single-handedly setting the stage for the advent of “post-theory” in Romanian cultural studies through the development of notions whose life can be extended well outside the realm of the country’s academic output. Innovative concepts and perspectives emerge as Pavel convincingly localizes the tenets of post-theory within the scope of Romanian literature, while also occasionally stepping into international waters, as in an essay on the works of Klaus Obermaier. As imaginative and honest as it is subtle and precise, Characters of Theory, Beings of Fiction works through the political realities underpinning the creation of art in order to shed light on its ontological singularity. Though this undertaking might sound familiar in the wake of the many “turns” in Contemporary cultural studies, Pavel’s lines of inquiry bear strikingly surprising and vital results.