Nicolae T. Orășanu (1833?–August 7, 1890) was a

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

n-born

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

n poet, prose writer and newspaper editor. Born in

Craiova Craiova (, also , ) is the largest city in southwestern Romania, List of Romanian cities, the seventh largest city in the country and the capital of Dolj County, situated near the east bank of the river Jiu River, Jiu in central Oltenia. It i ...

, he attended high school at

Saint Sava College Saint Sava College was one of the earliest academic institutions in Wallachia, Romania. It was the predecessor to both Saint Sava National College and the University of Bucharest. History It was the continuator of the Princely Academy from Buchare ...

in the national capital

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

. As a young man, Orășanu entered politics and the newspaper business; his was a rebellious spirit that rejected autocracy and embraced being in opposition. Together with

C. A. Rosetti Constantin Alexandru Rosetti (; 2 June 1816 – 8 April 1885) was a Romanian literary and political leader, born in Bucharest into the princely Rosetti family. Biography Before 1848 Constantin Alexandru Rosetti was born in Bucharest, the ...

, he edited ''Țânțarul'' in 1859. Then, on his own, he edited a series of satirical gazettes. These mainly had ingenious demonic titles: ''Spiriduș'', ''Nichipercea'', ''Cicala'', ''Sarsailă'', ''Urzicătorul'', ''Asmodeu'', but also ''Opiniunea națională'', ''Daracul'', ''Ghimpele'', ''Farfara'' and ''Cucu''. At the same time, he published brochures in the same style: ''Coarnele lui Nichipercea'', ''Coada lui Nichipercea'', ''Ochiul dracului'', ''Codița dracului'', ''Ghearele dracului''. Orășanu signed either using his initials or pen names such as G. Palicaropol, Cetățenescu, Iago, Ioana lui Vișan, Văduva, Netto, Nicor, Odobașa and Orășenescu. Orășanu made his published debut early, with the 1854 volume ''Floricele de primăvară''. This featured sentimental poems that formed a marked contrast to his biting temperament, yielding to the prevailing Romantic mood. His main literary preoccupation became the "rhymed chronicle", cultivated with a certain trivial verve and appearing in a series of brochures with parodic titles such as ''Misterele mahalalelor sau Cronica scandaloasă a orașului'' (vol. I-IX, 1857-1858), ''Târgul cu idei sau Buletinul Cișmegiului'' (vol. I-IX, 1857) and ''Trei feți logofeți sau Povestea lui Fâl-fâl-son'' (1857). Through such "verse novels", at least insofar as typology, attitude and vernacular style are concerned, Orășanu was a precursor to the literature of the slum. He was more successful as a memoirist, in the 1861 ''Întemnițările mele politice''. He drew upon the example of

Silvio Pellico Silvio Pellico (; 24 June 1789 – 31 January 1854) was an Italian writer, poet, dramatist and patriot active in the Italian unification. Biography Silvio Pellico was born in Saluzzo, Piedmont. He spent the earlier portion of his life at Pi ...

to evoke his prison experiences, leavening his narrative with humor. In the brochure ''O pagină a vieții mele sau 22, 23 și 24 ianaurie 1859'', another memoir, he claimed to have played a much-exaggerated role in the election as ''

domnitor ''Prince Domnitor'', in full ''Principe Domnitor'' (Romanian pl. ''Principi Domnitori'') was the official title of the ruler of Romania between 1862 and 1881. It was usually translated as "prince regnant" in English and most other languages, ...

'' of Alexandru Ion Cuza. The writer later became an adversary of the ruler, directing the verse pamphlet ''Trefleac voivod'' against him. He translated works by

Charles Paul de Kock Charles Paul de Kock (May 21, 1793 in Passy, Paris – April 27, 1871 in Paris) was a French novelist. Although one of the most popular writers of his day in terms of book sales, he acquired a literary reputation for low-brow output in poor taste ...

(''Sora Ana'', 1856),

Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian (6 March 1755, near Sauve, Gard, France – 13 September 1794, Sceaux, Hauts-de-Seine, Sceaux, France) was a French poet, novelist and fabulist. Life Jean-Pierre Claris de Florian was born on 6 March 1755 in t ...

(''Gonzalv de Cordova'', 1858) and

Jean-Louis Carra Jean-Louis Carra (born on 9 March 1742 in Pont-de-Veyle and guillotined on 31 October 1793 in Paris) was a journalist and participant in the French Revolution. He played a key role in the Insurrection of 10 August 1792 that overthrew the monar ...

(''Istoria Moldaviii și a Româniii''). Orășanu worked as an inspector at the tobacco monopoly and then at the liquor taxation office, and was twice a manager at ''

Monitorul Oficial ''Monitorul Oficial al României'' is the official government gazette, gazette of Romania, in which all the promulgation, promulgated bills, President of Romania, presidential decrees, Government of Romania, governmental ordinances and other m ...

'' and at the official press, Imprimeria Statului. Nevertheless, his financial situation was insecure. More than his writings, his biography makes Orășanu a very colorful figure during a period of transition. He died in Negreni,

Olt County Olt County () is a county (județ) of Romania on the border with Bulgaria, in the Historical regions of Romania, historical regions of Oltenia and Muntenia (the regions are separated by the Olt River, Olt river). The capital city is Slatina, Roma ...

.Aurel Sasu (ed.), ''Dicționarul biografic al literaturii române'', vol. II, pp. 263-4. Pitești: Editura Paralela 45, 2004.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orasanu, N. T. 1830s births 1890 deaths 19th-century Wallachian writers People from Craiova Saint Sava National College alumni Romanian newspaper editors Romanian poets Romanian memoirists 19th-century Romanian civil servants 19th-century Romanian memoirists 19th-century Romanian translators