Traian Herseni
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Traian Herseni (February 18, 1907 – July 17, 1980) was a
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 social scientist, journalist, and political figure. First noted as a favorite disciple of
Dimitrie Gusti Dimitrie Gusti (; 13 February 1880 – 30 October 1955) was a Romanian sociologist, ethnologist, historian, and voluntarist philosopher; a professor at the University of Iași and the University of Bucharest, he served as Romania's Minister ...
, he helped establish the Romanian school of
rural sociology Rural sociology is a field of sociology traditionally associated with the study of social structure and conflict in rural areas. It is an active academic field in much of the world, originating in the United States in the 1910s with close ties ...
in the 1920s and early 1930s, and took part in
interdisciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several fields such as sociology, anthropology, psychology, economi ...
study groups and field trips. A prolific essayist and researcher, he studied isolated human groups across the country, trying to define relations between sociology,
ethnography Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...
, and
cultural anthropology Cultural anthropology is a branch of anthropology focused on the study of cultural variation among humans. It is in contrast to social anthropology, which perceives cultural variation as a subset of a posited anthropological constant. The term ...
, with an underlying interest in sociological
epistemology Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that examines the nature, origin, and limits of knowledge. Also called "the theory of knowledge", it explores different types of knowledge, such as propositional knowledge about facts, practical knowle ...
. He was particularly interested in the peasant cultures and
pastoral society A pastoral society is a social group of pastoralists, whose way of life is based on pastoralism, and is typically nomadic. Daily life is centered upon the tending of herds or flocks. Social organization There is not an explicit form of the socia ...
of the
Făgăraș Mountains The Făgăraș Mountains ( ; ) are the highest mountains of the Southern Carpathians, in Romania. Geography The mountain range is situated in the heart of Romania, at . The range is bordered in the north by the Făgăraș Depression, through wh ...
. Competing with
Anton Golopenția Anton Golopenția (May 12, 1909 – September 9, 1951) was an Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian sociologist. Biography Beginnings, education and early career Born in Prigor, Caraș-Severin County, his father Simion was a lawyer originally from Pec ...
for the role of Gusti's leading disciple, Herseni emerged as the winner in 1937; from 1932, he also held a teaching position at the
University of Bucharest The University of Bucharest (UB) () is a public university, public research university in Bucharest, Romania. It was founded in its current form on by a decree of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza to convert the former Princely Academy of Bucharest, P ...
. Herseni became a committed
eugenicist Eugenics is a set of largely discredited beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetics, genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter the frequency of various human Phenotype, phenotypes by ...
and
racial scientist Scientific racism, sometimes termed biological racism, is the pseudoscience, pseudoscientific belief that the Human, human species is divided into biologically distinct taxa called "race (human categorization), races", and that empirical evi ...
, who discarded a moderate left-wing stance to embrace
fascism Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hie ...
, and parted ways with Gusti over his support for the
Iron Guard The Iron Guard () was a Romanian militant revolutionary nationalism, revolutionary Clerical fascism, religious fascist Political movement, movement and political party founded in 1927 by Corneliu Zelea Codreanu as the Legion of the Archangel M ...
. He was nevertheless protected during the anti-Guard backlash of 1938, when Gusti made him a clerk within the Social Service, part of the
National Renaissance Front The National Renaissance Front (, FRN; also translated as ''Front of National Regeneration'', ''Front of National Rebirth'', ''Front of National Resurrection'', or ''Front of National Renaissance'') was a Romanian political party created by King Ca ...
apparatus. A leading functionary and ideologue of the fascist
National Legionary State The National Legionary State () was a Totalitarianism, totalitarian Fascism, fascist regime which governed Kingdom of Romania, Romania for five months, from 14 September 1940 until its official dissolution on 14 February 1941. The regime was led ...
, and a figure of cultural and political importance under dictator
Ion Antonescu Ion Antonescu (; ; – 1 June 1946) was a Romanian military officer and Mareșal (Romania), marshal who presided over two successive Romania during World War II, wartime dictatorships as Prime Minister of Romania, Prime Minister and ''Conduc ...
, he proposed the
compulsory sterilization Compulsory sterilization, also known as forced or coerced sterilization, refers to any government-mandated program to involuntarily sterilize a specific group of people. Sterilization removes a person's capacity to reproduce, and is usually do ...
of "inferior races", and wrote praises of
Nazi racial policy The racial policy of Nazi Germany was a set of policies and laws implemented in Nazi Germany under the dictatorship of Adolf Hitler, based on pseudoscientific and racist doctrines asserting the superiority of the putative "Aryan race", which cl ...
. Indicted by the
communist regime A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state in which the totality of the power belongs to a party adhering to some form of Marxism–Leninism, a branch of the communist ideology. Marxism–Leninism was ...
in 1951, he spent four years in prison. He made a slow return to favors as a researcher for the
Romanian Academy The Romanian Academy ( ) is a cultural forum founded in Bucharest, Romania, in 1866. It covers the scientific, artistic and literary domains. The academy has 181 active members who are elected for life. According to its bylaws, the academy's ma ...
, participating in the resumption of sociological research, as well as experimenting in
social psychology Social psychology is the methodical study of how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. Although studying many of the same substantive topics as its counterpart in the field ...
and pioneering
industrial sociology Industrial sociology, until recently a crucial research area within the field of sociology of work, examines "the direction and implications of trends in technological change, globalization, labour markets, work organization, managerial practic ...
. Formally a partisan of Marxism-Leninism after 1956, Herseni was more genuinely committed to
national communism National communism is a term describing various forms in which Marxism–Leninism and socialism has been adopted and/or implemented by leaders in different countries using aspects of nationalism or national identity to form a policy independent ...
. The national communist policies instituted during the late 1960s allowed him to revisit some of his controversial theses about the ancestral roots of
Romanian culture The culture of Romania is an umbrella term used to encapsulate the ideas, customs and social behaviours of the people of Romania that developed due to the country's distinct geopolitical history and evolution. It is theorized that Romanians an ...
. At various intervals, the regime appropriated his radical ideas on ethnicity, including some criticized as racist. Herseni's final works dealt with
ethnology Ethnology (from the , meaning 'nation') is an academic field and discipline that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology). Sci ...
,
national psychology National psychology refers to the (real or alleged) distinctive psychological make-up of particular nations, ethnic groups or peoples, and to the comparative study of those characteristics in social psychology, sociology, political science and anthr ...
, the sociology of literature, and
sociological theory A sociological theory is a that intends to consider, analyze, and/or explain objects of social reality from a sociological perspective,Macionis, John and Linda M. Gerber. 2010. ''Sociology'' (7th Canadian ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson ...
in general. In the 1970s, he also produced a body of works interpreting
Romanian folklore The folklore of Romania is the collection of traditions of the Romanians. A feature of Romanian culture is the special relationship between folklore and the learned culture, determined by two factors. First, the rural character of the Romania ...
, in which he emphasized the connections with
Indo-European The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...
and
Paleo-Balkan mythology Paleo-Balkan mythology is the group of religious beliefs held by Paleo-Balkan-speaking peoples in ancient times, including Illyrian, Thracian and Dacian mythologies. Horseman The horseman was a common Palaeo-Balkan hero. The original Palaeo- ...
.


Biography


Origins and schooling

Herseni was a native of
Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...
, which, for most of his childhood, was an
Austro-Hungarian Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...
province. His home village was Iași (Jás), in what was then
Brassó County Brassó was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now in central Romania (south-eastern Transylvania). The capital of the county was Brassó (''Brașov'' in Romanian, ''Kronstadt'' in German). Geography ...
(present-day
Brașov County Brașov County () is a county (județ) of Transylvania, Romania. Its capital city is Brașov. The county incorporates within its boundaries most of the Medieval "lands" (''țări'') Burzenland and Făgăraș. Name In Hungarian language, Hungari ...
), where his father worked as a notary public. On his paternal side, Herseni originated from nearby
Hârseni Hârseni (; ) is a commune in Brașov County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of five villages: Copăcel (''Kopacsel''), Hârseni, Măliniș (''Malinis''), Mărgineni (''Marginen'') and Sebeș (''Sebes''). The commune is located in Țara Fă ...
, which apparently gave the family its name; several families of that name exist throughout the area, suggesting that the
anthroponym Anthroponymy (also anthroponymics or anthroponomastics, from Ancient Greek ἄνθρωπος ''anthrōpos'', 'human', and ὄνομα ''onoma'', 'name') is the study of ''anthroponyms'', the proper names of human beings, both individual and coll ...
precedes the geographical location—one theory, advanced by historian
Augustin Bunea Augustin Bunea (August 4, 1857–November 30, 1909) was an Austro-Hungarian ethnic Romanian historian and priest within the Romanian Greek-Catholic Church. Biography Origins and role in Blaj Bunea was born in Vad, a village in the Țara F ...
, is that all Hersenis originate with an Istro-Romanian clan, itself dubbed "Hersenicus". By the time of his death, the sociologist was recorded as a member of the
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
community."Decese", in ''
România Liberă Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central, 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 the east, and the Black Sea t ...
'', July 18, 1980, p. 4
Born on February 18, 1907, Herseni went to school in Iași (1912–1915) and
Făgăraș Făgăraș (; , ) is a municipiu, city in central Romania, located in Brașov County. It lies on the Olt (river), Olt River and has a population of 26,284 as of 2021. It is situated in the historical region of Transylvania, and is the main city of ...
(1915–1924),Stahl (1980), p. 698 graduating in 1924 from the Radu Negru High School. These years coincided with World War I and the recognition of Transylvania's union with Romania: Herseni began his secondary education in a Hungarian-speaking regimen,Nastasă, p. 407 and passed his baccalaureate examination in 1924, as a Romanian national. At the time, he was president of the students' literary club, named in honor of poet
George Coșbuc George Coșbuc (; 20 September 1866 – 9 May 1918) was a Romanian poet, translator, teacher, and journalist, best remembered for his verses describing, praising and eulogizing rural life, its many travails but also its occasions for joy. In 19 ...
. From 1924, Herseni was a student at the
University of Bucharest The University of Bucharest (UB) () is a public university, public research university in Bucharest, Romania. It was founded in its current form on by a decree of Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza to convert the former Princely Academy of Bucharest, P ...
Faculty of Law, studying under Gusti,
Constantin Rădulescu-Motru Constantin Rădulescu-Motru (; born Constantin Rădulescu, he added the surname ''Motru'' in 1892; February 15, 1868 – March 6, 1957) was a Romanian philosopher, psychologist, sociologist, logician, academic, dramatist, as well as Left-win ...
,
Nicolae Iorga Nicolae Iorga (17 January 1871 – 27 November 1940) was a historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, Albanologist, poet and playwright. Co-founder (in 1910) of the Democratic Nationalist Party (PND), he served as a member of Parliament ...
,
Ovid Densusianu Ovid Densusianu (; also known under his pen name Ervin; 29 December 1873, Făgăraș – 9 June 1938, Bucharest) was a Romanian poet, philologist, linguist, folklorist, literary historian and critic, chief of a poetry school, university professor ...
, and
Vasile Pârvan Vasile Pârvan (; 28 September 1882 – 26 June 1927) was a Romanian historian and archaeologist. Biography Pârvan was born in Perchiu, Huruiești commune, Bacău County. He came from a modest family, being the first child of the teacher An ...
. Ludmila Doroșencu
"Podurile de flori mai sunt trecătoare"
in ''Biblio Polis'', Vol. 24, Issue 4, 2007
Passionate about Gusti's attempts to restructure Romanian social science around rural sociology and
participant observation Participant observation is one type of data collection method by practitioner-scholars typically used in qualitative research and ethnography. This type of methodology is employed in many disciplines, particularly anthropology (including cultur ...
, Herseni was taken on board for Gusti's field trips to
Nereju Nereju is a commune located in Vrancea County, Romania. It is composed of five villages: Brădăcești, Chiricani (or ''Chiricari''), Nereju, Nereju Mic, and Sahastru. Nereju, Nereju Mic, and Brădăcești lie along the Zăbala River, while Chir ...
(1927) and
Fundu Moldovei Fundu Moldovei () is a commune located in Suceava County, Bukovina, northeastern Romania. It is composed of ten villages, namely: Botuș, Botușel, Braniștea, Colacu, Delnița, Deluț, Fundu Moldovei, Obcina Ursului, Plai, and Smida Ungurenilor. ...
(1928). Another one of Gusti's students, Henri H. Stahl, first met and befriended him at Nereju, and was impressed by the encounter. Herseni, he writes, "appeared quiet, withdrawn; and yet not lonesome", "ready to take on whoever would oppose him, whether friend or rival". He grasped complex social issues with "rapidity", and "imposed himself as one of the team leaders, obtaining for himself a rank that he would never lose". Herseni was particularly involved in a project to collect data on "pastoral sociology", while Stanciu Stoian observed village schools and
Xenia Costa-Foru Xenia may refer to: People * Xenia (name), a feminine given name; includes a list of people with this name Places United States ''listed alphabetically by state'' * Xenia, Illinois, a village in Clay County ** Xenia Township, Clay County, Illi ...
pioneered studies in the
sociology of the family Sociology of the family is a subfield of sociology in which researchers and academics study family structure as a social institution and unit of socialization from various sociological perspectives. It can be seen as an example of patterned soci ...
. Herseni passed his final examination in 1928, having specialized in sociology, psychology, and
pedagogy Pedagogy (), most commonly understood as the approach to teaching, is the theory and practice of learning, and how this process influences, and is influenced by, the social, political, and psychological development of learners. Pedagogy, taken ...
, and presenting a paper on social relations as observed in Fundu Moldovei.Stahl (1980), pp. 698, 700 This qualified him to teach sociology at the Gheorghe Lazăr National College, where he worked for the following school year. In 1929, he went to
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
for more specialization. He enlisted at the Frederick William (Humboldt) University, where he heard lectures by
Werner Sombart Werner may refer to: People * Werner (name), origin of the name and people with this name as surname and given name Fictional characters * Werner (comics), a German comic book character * Werner Von Croy, a fictional character in the ''Tomb Rai ...
,
Eduard Spranger Eduard Spranger (; 27 June 1882 – 17 September 1963) was a German philosopher and psychologist. A student of Wilhelm Dilthey, Spranger was born in Berlin and died in Tübingen. He was considered a humanist who developed a philosophical ped ...
,
Richard Thurnwald Richard Thurnwald (18 September 1869 – 19 January 1954) was an Austrian anthropologist and sociologist, known for his comparative studies of social institutions. Biography He studied law, economics and oriental languages in Berlin, earning ...
, and Alfred Vierkandt. He published an overview of German sociology in Gusti's ''Arhiva pentru Știință și Reformă Socială'', praising it as a "lively and freely-moving science", and as a good model for sociology in "the less advanced countries". Herseni returned to
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 ...
in 1930, did his obligatory service in the
Romanian Land Forces The Romanian Land Forces () is the army of Romania, and the main component of the Romanian Armed Forces. Since 2007, full professionalization and a major equipment overhaul have transformed the nature of the Land Forces. The Romanian Land Force ...
, then took part in expeditions, organized by Gusti's Romanian Social Institute (ISR), to
Drăguș Drăguș (; ) is a commune in Brașov County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of a single village, Drăguș, part of Viștea Commune until being split off in 2004. Drăguș is located at the western edge of Brașov County, in the central p ...
, Runcu, and Cornova. Drăguș, a center of the ethnographic region known as
Țara Oltului ''Ţara'' () was a magazine from the Republic of Moldova founded on August 15, 1990 as a newspaper of the Popular Front of Moldova. Ţara was the successor of Deşteptarea. Ştefan Secăreanu was the editor in chief and Sergiu Burcă was the dep ...
, was selected on his insistence, being located in close proximity to his native village. At Cornova, Herseni focused on the social hierarchies and segregated clans of a
Bessarabia Bessarabia () is a historical region in Eastern Europe, bounded by the Dniester river on the east and the Prut river on the west. About two thirds of Bessarabia lies within modern-day Moldova, with the Budjak region covering the southern coa ...
n community. He spent some time researching on his own at a sheepcote in the
Făgăraș Mountains The Făgăraș Mountains ( ; ) are the highest mountains of the Southern Carpathians, in Romania. Geography The mountain range is situated in the heart of Romania, at . The range is bordered in the north by the Făgăraș Depression, through wh ...
, publishing his results in ''
Boabe de grâu ''Boabe de grâu'' (English: "Wheat grains") was a Romanian cultural magazine published between 1930 and 1934. History ''Boabe de grâu'' was founded by Romanian writer Emanoil Bucuța in March 1930, and was printed in Bucharest under the direc ...
'' review. He also began contributing to the
Cluj Cluj-Napoca ( ; ), or simply Cluj ( , ), is a city in northwestern Romania. It is the second-most populous city in the country and the seat of Cluj County. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest (), Budapest () and Belgrade ( ...
magazine '' Societatea de Mâine'', with articles that inventoried and examined the various kinds of
social distance In sociology, social distance describes the distance between individuals or social groups in society, including dimensions such as social class, race/ethnicity, gender or sexuality. Members of different groups mix less than members of the same g ...
.


As Gusti's aide

In 1932, Herseni married a university and ISR colleague, Paula Gusty. She was the daughter of
Paul Gusty Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo P ...
, a famous theater director (the similarity in surnames makes it likely, but not certain, that she was related to Gusti himself). Also that year, having lectured for a while at
Sabin Manuilă Sabin Manuilă (or Mănuilă; February 19, 1894 – November 20, 1964) was an Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian statistician, demographer and physician. A nationalist activist during World War I, he became noted for his pioneering research into the b ...
's School of Social Work, Herseni was appointed by Gusti's an assistant professor in the University of Bucharest department of sociology, ethics and politics. Stahl claims to have been Gusti's first choice, but to have declined the position in order to suit Herseni, who, as a married man, needed a steady flow of income. As a result, Herseni was slightly better off financially than other intellectuals of his generation. Herseni also followed Stahl's political options: he sympathized with the left-wing cell within the
National Peasants' Party The National Peasants' Party (also known as the National Peasant Party or National Farmers' Party; , or ''Partidul Național-Țărănist'', PNȚ) was an Agrarianism, agrarian political party in the Kingdom of Romania. It was formed in 1926 throu ...
, and, in 1933, contributed to center-left reviews such as
Zaharia Stancu Zaharia Stancu (; October 7, 1902 – December 5, 1974) was a Romanian prose writer, novelist, poet, and philosopher. He was also the director of the National Theatre Bucharest, the President of the Writers' Union of Romania, and a titular memb ...
's ''
Azi Azi or AZI may refer to: People * Azi (scribe), a scribe from the ancient kingdom of Ebla * Azi Aslanov, an Azerbaijani major-general during World War II * Azi Shahril Azmi, a Malaysian footballer *Azi Paybarah, a New York-based journalist Other ...
'' and Stahl's own ''Stânga''. Zoltán Rostás
"Fermentul unei generații. Corespondența lui Anton Golopenția"
in ''
Revista 22 ''Revista 22'' (''22 Magazine'') is a Romanian weekly magazine, issued by the Group for Social Dialogue and focused mainly on politics and culture. History and profile ''Revista 22'' was started in 1990. The first edition of the magazine was prin ...
'', Issue 1060, June 2010
He declared himself a partisan of "
social democracy Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...
" and
class collaboration Class collaboration is a principle of social organization based upon the belief that the division of society into a hierarchy of social classes is a positive and essential aspect of civilization. Fascist support Class collaboration is one of ...
, "not a Marxist, and not a communist, but nevertheless a man of the left". An article he published in '' Gând Românesc'' in early 1933 shows him as a
deist Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin term '' deus'', meaning "god") is the philosophical position and rationalistic theology that generally rejects revelation as a source of divine knowledge and asserts that empirical reason and observation ...
and Christian existentialist, who argued that the ''
Übermensch The ( , ; 'Overman' or 'Superman') is a concept in the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche. In his 1883 book, '' Thus Spoke Zarathustra'' (), Nietzsche has his character Zarathustra posit the as a goal for humanity to set for itself. The repre ...
'' where those Christians who could attain a state of grace. The rest of the populace, Herseni argued, "are forever non-human."
Emil Cioran Emil Mihai Cioran (; ; ; 8 April 1911 – 20 June 1995) was a Romanian philosopher, aphorist and essayist, who published works in both Romanian and French. His work has been noted for its pervasive philosophical pessimism, style, and aphorism ...
, a philosopher of that generation, described Herseni as "passionate" about "
Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; 26 September 1889 – 26 May 1976) was a German philosopher known for contributions to phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. His work covers a range of topics including metaphysics, art, and language. In April ...
's existential philosophy", with a "metaphysical sensibility" that was the mark of "true Transylvanian intellectuals, as if to compensate for the petty bourgeois spirit of middle-of-the-road intellectuals". In 1933, shortly after the
Nazi seizure of power The rise to power of Adolf Hitler, dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 to 1945, began in the newly established Weimar Republic in September 1919, when Hitler joined the '' Deutsche Arbeiterpartei'' (DAP; German Workers' Party). He quickly rose t ...
, Herseni visited
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
, befriending there the anti-Nazi Romanian
Petre Pandrea Petre Pandrea, pen name of Petre Ion Marcu, also known as Petru Marcu Balș (26 June 1904 – 8 July 1968), was a Romanian social philosopher, lawyer, and political activist, also noted as an essayist, journalist, and memoirist. A native of rural ...
. He took his
Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...
in 1934, with the dissertation paper ''Realitatea socială'' ("Social Reality"), an "essay in regional onthology". It earned praise from Gusti, who called Herseni "one of the most gifted and educated outhsof today's generation", one promising to "enrich Romanian sociology and philosophy with very valuable works." Stahl recalls that only Herseni could match his teacher's "surprisingly vast erudition" and "systematization" of received knowledge; he was also among the more loyal of Gusti's gifted disciples, effectively replacing
Petre Andrei Petre Andrei (June 29, 1891 – October 4, 1940) was a Romanian sociologist, philosopher, and politician who served as Education Minister in 1938–1940. Biography Origins and work He was born in Brăila, the fourth child of a family of low-rank ...
, who had spoken out against the ISR. Herseni was an enthusiastic promoter of sociological campaigns, famous as the ISR's "
polygraph A polygraph, often incorrectly referred to as a lie detector test, is a pseudoscientific device or procedure that measures and records several physiological indicators such as blood pressure, pulse, respiration, and skin conductivity while a ...
" and as Gusti's most orthodox interpreter. According to Stahl, Herseni intended to both popularize sociology and give it "philosophical depth", treating the two tasks as equally important. Taking a
neo-Kantian In late modern philosophy, neo-Kantianism () was a revival of the 18th-century philosophy of Immanuel Kant. The neo-Kantians sought to develop and clarify Kant's theories, particularly his concept of the thing-in-itself and his moral philosophy ...
approach to science, Herseni believed that a sound phenomenological inquiry needed to clarify the position and limits of
social constructionism Social constructionism is a term used in sociology, social ontology, and communication theory. The term can serve somewhat different functions in each field; however, the foundation of this Conceptual framework, theoretical framework suggests ...
, or, as Stahl puts it, to find out "whether there is a 'social' reality, as distinct from 'natural' and 'spiritual' realities." Moreover, Herseni explored the challenges of sociological
epistemology Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that examines the nature, origin, and limits of knowledge. Also called "the theory of knowledge", it explores different types of knowledge, such as propositional knowledge about facts, practical knowle ...
and the methodology of participant observation. He believed that objectivity could only be attained with self-imposed limitations and a laborious, preferably collective and
interdisciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several fields such as sociology, anthropology, psychology, economi ...
, research program. Herseni declared in 1934 that he followed
Ernst Kantorowicz Ernst Hartwig Kantorowicz (May 3, 1895 – September 9, 1963) was a German historian of medieval political and intellectual history and art, known for his 1927 book '' Kaiser Friedrich der Zweite'' on Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, and '' The K ...
, who had defined sociology as, above all, an experimental science. Also that year, he spoke out in support of Cioran and
Constantin Noica Constantin Noica (; – 4 December 1987) was a Romanian philosopher, essayist and poet. His preoccupations were throughout all philosophy, from epistemology, philosophy of culture, axiology and philosophic anthropology to ontology and logics ...
's
subjectivism Subjectivism is the doctrine that "our own mental activity is the only unquestionable fact of our experience", instead of shared or communal, and that there is no external or objective truth. While Thomas Hobbes was an early proponent of subjecti ...
, positing that philosophy needed to be understood as inherently separate from science.Ionel Necula, "Reverberații. O generație cu destin de Port-Royal sălbatic", in ''
Contemporanul ''Contemporanul'' (''The Contemporary'') was a Romanian literary magazine published in Iaşi, Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukrain ...
'', Vol. XIV, Issue 5–8, February 2003, p. 55
Largely "
empirical Empirical evidence is evidence obtained through sense experience or experimental procedure. It is of central importance to the sciences and plays a role in various other fields, like epistemology and law. There is no general agreement on how t ...
", Herseni and Stahl's sociology nevertheless took its distance from the " transcendentalist" approach of social scientists such as
Mircea Vulcănescu Mircea Aurel Vulcănescu (3 March 1904 – 28 October 1952) was a Romanian philosopher, economist, ethics teacher, sociologist, and politician. Undersecretary at the Ministry of Finance from 1941 to 1944 in the Nazi-aligned government of Io ...
, with whom they first clashed in Fundu Moldovei. By 1938, their highly localized qualitative approach was conceding ground to a
quantitative Quantitative may refer to: * Quantitative research, scientific investigation of quantitative properties * Quantitative analysis (disambiguation) * Quantitative verse, a metrical system in poetry * Statistics, also known as quantitative analysis ...
"zonal" tactic, which was favored by Gusti and
Anton Golopenția Anton Golopenția (May 12, 1909 – September 9, 1951) was an Austro-Hungarian-born Romanian sociologist. Biography Beginnings, education and early career Born in Prigor, Caraș-Severin County, his father Simion was a lawyer originally from Pec ...
. Herseni adopted a tactic of publishing his work in stages, from raw studies in ''Societatea de Mâine'' to monographic series, and finally to synthetic volumes and brochures. One such work was printed at Gusti's expense, as ''Monografia sociologică; rostul, metoda și problemele ei'' ("The Sociological Monograph; Its Purpose, Method and Issues"), then reissued in 1934 as ''Teoria monografiei sociologice'' ("The Theory of Sociological Monographs"), to be used as a standard ISR manual. Gusti also backed Herseni's candidature as chair of the
University of Cluj A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...
sociology department, vacated after
Virgil Bărbat Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: the ''Eclogues'' ( ...
's death. The project failed when local academics elected one of their own, Constantin Sudețeanu, and prompted a much-publicized scandal.


Fascist dissent

Unlike Gusti, Herseni shied away from public speaking,Stahl (1980), p. 701 but was one of the ISR speakers at the 12th Congress of the
International Institute of Sociology The International Institute of Sociology (IIS) is a scholarly organization which seeks to stimulate and facilitate the development, exchange, and application of scientific knowledge to questions of sociological relevance. Membership is open to al ...
(IIS), held in Brussels in August 1935.Bulgaru, p. 18 He continued to publish his sociological sketches in various magazines and newspapers. In addition to ''Societatea de Mâine'', ''Gând Românesc'', and the ISR's ''Arhiva pentru Știință și Reformă Socială'' and ''Sociologie Românească'', these include '' Familia'', ''
Tribuna Tribuna may refer to: * ''Tribuna'' (Russian newspaper), a Russian weekly newspaper * ''Tribuna Portuguesa'', a bilingual newspaper serving the Portuguese-American community * Tribuna.com, a digital sports publisher * Tribuna Monumental, a monum ...
'', ''
Revista Fundațiilor Regale ''Revista Fundațiilor Regale'' ("The Review of Royal Foundations") was a monthly literary, art and culture magazine published in Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and ...
'', ''Independența Economică'', and ''Semne''. Herseni was also a social-science columnist for ''
Viața Românească ''Viața Românească'' (, "The Romanian Life") is a monthly literary magazine published in Romania. Formerly the platform of the left-wing traditionalist trend known as poporanism, it is now one of the Writers' Union of Romania's main venues. ...
'', added to the editorial team by
Mihai Ralea Mihai Dumitru Ralea (also known as Mihail Ralea, Michel Raléa, or Mihai Rale;Straje, p. 586 May 1, 1896 – August 17, 1964) was a Romanian social scientist, cultural journalist, and political figure. He debuted as an affiliate of Poporanism, th ...
, the left-wing sociologist.Camelia Zavarache, "Geometria unei relații complexe: elite, modele ale modernizării statale și regimuri politice în România secolului XX", in Cristian Vasile (ed.), ''"Ne trebuie oameni!". Elite intelectuale și transformări istorice în România modernă și contemporană'',
Nicolae Iorga Institute of History The Nicolae Iorga Institute of History (; abbreviation: IINI) is an institution of research in the field of history under the auspices of the Romanian Academy. The institute is located at 1 Bulevardul Aviatorilor in Sector 1 of Bucharest, Romania. ...
& Editura Cetatea de Scaun, Târgoviște, 2017, , p. 255
Falling more in line with the ''Societatea de Mâine'' group, and influenced by physician Iuliu Moldovan, Herseni became a visible supporter of
eugenics Eugenics is a set of largely discredited beliefs and practices that aim to improve the genetic quality of a human population. Historically, eugenicists have attempted to alter the frequency of various human phenotypes by inhibiting the fer ...
and
biopolitics Biopolitics is a concept popularized by the French philosopher Michel Foucault in the mid-20th century. At its core, biopolitics explores how governmental power operates through the management and regulation of a population's bodies and lives. ...
, introducing eugenicist language to works he wrote alongside Gusti. This interest soon veered into
scientific racism Scientific racism, sometimes termed biological racism, is the pseudoscience, pseudoscientific belief that the Human, human species is divided into biologically distinct taxa called "race (human categorization), races", and that empirical evi ...
and
fascism Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social hie ...
, possibly inspired to Herseni by another eugenicist,
Iordache Făcăoaru Iordache is a Romanian surname; ''Iordăchescu'' and ''Iordăcheanu'' were coined from Iordache. ''Iordache'' is of Greek origin, from '' Yeorgakis'' (Γεωργάκης), a patronymic from the Modern Greek first name ''Yiorgos'' (Γιώργος), f ...
; like Făcăoaru, Herseni viewed
antisemitism Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...
as natural and beneficent, eventually affiliating with the radically fascist
Iron Guard The Iron Guard () was a Romanian militant revolutionary nationalism, revolutionary Clerical fascism, religious fascist Political movement, movement and political party founded in 1927 by Corneliu Zelea Codreanu as the Legion of the Archangel M ...
. In 1944, Herseni described his joining of the Guard as a conscious rebellion against the establishment, prompted by his losing the (supposedly rigged) competition at Cluj. He was, according to cultural historian
Lucian Boia Lucian Boia (born 1 February 1944) is a Romanian historian. He is mostly known for his debunking of historical myths about Romania, for purging mainstream Romanian history of deformations arising from ideological propaganda, and as a fighter ag ...
, one of the more notorious Iron Guard figures among the university staff, in line with P. P. Panaitescu,
Radu Meitani Radu may refer to: People * Radu (given name), Romanian masculine given name * Radu (surname), Romanian surname * Rulers of Wallachia, see * Prince Radu of Romania (born 1960), disputed pretender to the former Romanian throne Other uses * Radu ( ...
, Vladimir Dumitrescu, and
Radu Gyr Radu Gyr (; pen name of Radu Ștefan Demetrescu ; March 2, 1905 – 29 April 1975) was a Romanian poet, essayist, playwright, journalist and fascist activist. Biography Early life Born in Câmpulung-Muscel, Gyr was the son of actor Ștefan ...
. Their extremist position was conspicuous enough that the more centrist Moldovan felt obliged to distance himself from both his disciples. By 1935, Herseni had also come to sympathize with a fascist dissidence which divided the Gustian movement: although attacked by
Ernest Bernea Ernest Bernea (28 March 1905 – 14 November 1990) was a Romanian sociologist, ethnographer, photographer, philosopher, poet, and far-right ideologue. Early life and education Ernest Bernea was born on 28 March 1905 in Focșani, Vrancea Count ...
in ''Rânduiala'' magazine, which spoke for this counter-current, he parted ways with Stahl over political stances. At the time, moderate left-wingers such as Stahl and Golopenția, witnessing the internecine conflicts between the Guardist supporters and the radical-left group headed by
Gheorghe Vlădescu-Răcoasa Gheorghe Vlădescu-Răcoasa (October 22, 1895 – December 17, 1989) was a Romanian sociologist, journalist, left-wing politician, and diplomat. Biography Origins and work with Gusti Born in Răcoasa, Vrancea County, his parents were Constant ...
, began equating Herseni's politics with an egotistic social climbing. Herseni's Iron Guard affiliation also ruined his relationship with Gusti: he abandoned his editorial office at the ISR's magazine, ''Sociologie Românească'', to be replaced by Golopenția, who was now Gusti's most treasured companion. Herseni also lost his post of assistant professor at the university, moving closer to the regional sociological school of
Bukovina Bukovina or ; ; ; ; , ; see also other languages. is a historical region at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. It is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided betwe ...
, which was headed by Guardist
Traian Brăileanu Traian Brăileanu or BrăileanAndrei Corbea-Hoișie, "'Wie die Juden Gewalt schreien': Aurel Onciul und die antisemitische Wende in der Bukowiner Öffentlichkeit nach 1907", in ''East Central Europe'', Vol. 39, Issue 1, 2012, p. 22 (September 14, ...
, becoming a regular contributor to Brăileanu's journal ''Însemnări Sociologice''. Together with his wife, who was acting as his secretary and unsigned co-author, he returned to Țara Oltului to study the youth "posses" (''cetele de feciori''). Herseni's split from the Bucharest school was not definitive: in 1935, together with Gusti, he wrote the sociology textbook for high school seniors. The next year, he participated in the ethnographic expedition to
Șanț Șanț (; ) is a commune in Bistrița-Năsăud County, Transylvania, 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, ...
, alongside Gusti, Stoian,
Constantin Brăiloiu Constantin Brăiloiu (13 August 1893 – 20 December 1958) was a Romanian composer and internationally known ethnomusicologist. He was born in Bucharest, the scion of an old boyar family from Oltenia. His father, Nicolae Brăiloiu, and his ...
,
Lena Constante Lena Constante (June 18, 1909 – November 2005) was a Romanian artist, essayist, and memoirist, known for her work in stage design and tapestry. A family friend of Communist Party politician Lucrețiu Pătrășcanu, she was arrested by the Comm ...
,
Jacques Lassaigne Jacques Lassaigne (born in Paris on December 17, 1911, and died on February 10, 1983) was a French art historian, art critic, and museum curator. He served as the president of the International Association of Art Critics from 1966 to 1969 and was ...
, Jozsef Venczel, and Harry Brauner, and contributed to a special homage issue of ''Arhiva'', where he honored Gusti's "sociological, ethical and political system". He and Gusti also published, at
Cartea Românească Cartea Românească ("The Romanian Book") is a publishing house in Bucharest, Romania, founded in 1919. Disestablished by the communist regime in 1948, it was restored under later communism, in 1970, when it functioned as the official imprint of t ...
, ''Elemente de sociologie cu aplicări la cunoașterea țării și a neamului nostru'' ("Elements of Sociology as Applied to the Study of Our Country and Our Nation"), a
geopolitical Geopolitics () is the study of the effects of Earth's geography on politics and international relations. Geopolitics usually refers to countries and relations between them, it may also focus on two other kinds of states: ''de facto'' independen ...
tract. It was partly inspired by, and partly opposed to, the theories of
Friedrich Ratzel Friedrich Ratzel (August 30, 1844 – August 9, 1904) was a German geographer and ethnographer, notable for first using the term ''Lebensraum'' ("living space") in the sense that the National Socialists later would. Life Ratzel's father was th ...
, and was highly skeptical of both
geographical Geography (from Ancient Greek ; combining 'Earth' and 'write', literally 'Earth writing') is the study of the lands, features, inhabitants, and phenomena of Earth. Geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks an understanding o ...
and
biological determinism Biological determinism, also known as genetic determinism, is the belief that human behaviour is directly controlled by an individual's genes or some component of their physiology, generally at the expense of the role of the environment, wheth ...
. Herseni was able to outmaneuver his rival Golopenția, who was largely absent from the country during that interval. When he returned, Herseni offered a "truce", which included ceding Golopenția some of his classes at university. In 1937, Gusti included Herseni on his team for the IIS Congress, which was held in tandem with Paris Expo. He lectured there on the "social equilibrium of the Romanian village". Herseni alternated such work with political writing. Also in 1937, he wrote a propaganda tract for the Iron Guard and the workers' movement, which was confiscated by the authorities upon publication. The text was a polemic with the Communist Party, which Herseni described as having a " Jewish doctrine", whereas the Guard genuinely represented workers. As noted by historian Adrian Cioflâncă, Herseni's credo had "great similarities with communist discourse", endorsing nationalization, a minimum wage, and social insurance, and a "work-based hierarchy" throughout society. From 1938, democracy was suspended in Romania, and
King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
Carol II Carol II (4 April 1953) was King of Romania from 8 June 1930, until his forced abdication on 6 September 1940. As the eldest son of Ferdinand I of Romania, King Ferdinand I, he became crown prince upon the death of his grand-uncle, King Carol I, ...
, an enemy of the Iron Guard, took charge of political and social affairs, ending democratic rule. The Iron Guard was repressed, with its leader,
Corneliu Zelea Codreanu Corneliu Zelea Codreanu (; 13 September 1899 – 30 November 1938), born Corneliu Zelinski and commonly known as Corneliu Codreanu, was a far-right Romanian politician, the founder and charismatic leader of the Iron Guard or ''The Legion of ...
, being seized and made to stand trial. In May 1938, Harseni appeared as one of Codreanu's 27 defense witnesses. Gusti was co-opted into Carol's dictatorial project, and assigned to lead the Social Service, which, as Stahl notes, was a positive venue for social improvement, but also a potential "tool" for Carol's authoritarianism. Despite his Guard affiliation and his approval of the
death squads A death squad is an armed group whose primary activity is carrying out extrajudicial killings, massacres, or enforced disappearances as part of political repression, genocide, ethnic cleansing, or revolutionary terror. Except in rare cases in ...
, for which he was denounced by Stancu in ''Azi'', Herseni was spared scrutiny, and probably never detained. Resuming his work at the university, he evaluated
Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
students such as Theodor Magder. According to Magder, Herseni showed himself to be "very demanding, but also very fair", in that he did not discriminate on an ethnic basis. Drafting Herseni into the Social Service, Gusti assigned him to teach a specialized course in rural sociology at the Bucharest sociology department, making him a referent and director of research at the ISR. There was also a rapprochement between Gusti and Brăileanu, which Herseni himself mediated. During July 1938, Herseni, Stahl and Vlădescu-Răcoasa where in Paris, attending the IIS 13th Congress, which voted to hold its next session in Bucharest. He also directed rural sociology campaigns in Țara Oltului, publishing his findings as a series of volumes. These were set to mark the IIS congress, which was ultimately canceled by World War II. He published fragments from his
history of sociology Sociology as a scholarly discipline emerged, primarily out of Enlightenment thought, as a positivist ''science of society'' shortly after the French Revolution. Its genesis owed to various key movements in the philosophy of science and the phi ...
courses in various installments between 1938 and 1941 as well as a manual on the drawing of
sociogram A sociogram is a graphic representation of social links that a person has. It is a graph drawing that plots the structure of interpersonal relations in a group situation. Overview Sociograms were developed by Jacob L. Moreno to analyze choice ...
s.Stahl (1980), p. 703


National Legionary doctrinaire

Carol formalized the single-party state in December 1938, establishing a "
National Renaissance Front The National Renaissance Front (, FRN; also translated as ''Front of National Regeneration'', ''Front of National Rebirth'', ''Front of National Resurrection'', or ''Front of National Renaissance'') was a Romanian political party created by King Ca ...
". In January 1939, by signing a letter drafted by Gusti, Herseni, Golopenția and Stahl were welcomed into this new group (other signatories included Al. Lascarov-Moldovanu and
Victor Ion Popa Victor Ion Popa (; July 29, 1895 – March 30, 1946) was a Romania, Romanian dramatist. Biography He was born in Bârlad, the first of three children of Ion Popa and Aspasia, née Pavelescu. He went to primary school in Călmățui, a village in ...
). In January 1940, Herseni was still affiliated with the Carlist regime, overseeing the creation of a state-sponsored National Students' Front; at the time, his wife was working as a schoolteacher in
Petru Rareș Petru Rareș (; – 3 September 1546) or Petru IV was twice voivode of Moldavia from 20 January 1527 to 18 September 1538 and from 19 February 1541 to 3 September 1546. He was an illegitimate child born (probably at Hârlău) to Stephen III of ...
, south of Bucharest. The looming threat of war and Romania's rapprochement with
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
sent the Gusti school into its final crisis: in summer 1940, Stahl was drafted and sent to work on the "futile" task of building up defenses; Herseni helped him obtain his Ph.D., intervening with the university leadership.Stahl (1981), p. 399 This was just before the downfall of the National Renaissance Front, brought on by the
Second Vienna Award The Second Vienna Award was the second of two territorial disputes that were arbitrated by Nazi Germany and the Kingdom of Italy. On 30 August 1940, they assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania, including all of Maramureș and part of Cri ...
, which saw Romania ceding
Northern Transylvania Northern Transylvania (, ) was the region of the Kingdom of Romania that during World War II, as a consequence of the August 1940 territorial agreement known as the Second Vienna Award, became part of the Kingdom of Hungary (1920-1946), Kingdom ...
to
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
. In the political chaos that followed, Gusti became a political suspect, and Carol ordered his own Social Service to be shut down by ''
Siguranța ''Siguranța'' was the generic name for the successive secret police services in the Kingdom of Romania. The official title of the organization changed throughout its history, with names including Directorate of the Police and General Safety () ...
'' policemen. The
Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
of the time,
Constantin Argetoianu Constantin Argetoianu ( – 6 February 1955) was a Romanian politician, one of the best-known personalities of interwar Greater Romania, who served as the Prime Minister between 28 September and 23 November 1939. His memoirs, ''Memorii. Pentru ...
, later referred to the Service as a "bad memory". Stelian Neagoe,
Constantin Argetoianu Constantin Argetoianu ( – 6 February 1955) was a Romanian politician, one of the best-known personalities of interwar Greater Romania, who served as the Prime Minister between 28 September and 23 November 1939. His memoirs, ''Memorii. Pentru ...

"Din însemnările zilnice ale lui Constantin Argetoianu (41)"
in ''
Jurnalul Național ''Jurnalul Național'' is a Romanian newspaper, part of the INTACT Media Group led by Dan Voiculescu, which also includes the popular television station Antena 1. The newspaper was launched in 1993. Its headquarters is in Bucharest Buchares ...
'', January 14, 2011
On September 6, 1940, the Iron Guard took power in Romania, proclaiming the
National Legionary State The National Legionary State () was a Totalitarianism, totalitarian Fascism, fascist regime which governed Kingdom of Romania, Romania for five months, from 14 September 1940 until its official dissolution on 14 February 1941. The regime was led ...
, with General
Ion Antonescu Ion Antonescu (; ; – 1 June 1946) was a Romanian military officer and Mareșal (Romania), marshal who presided over two successive Romania during World War II, wartime dictatorships as Prime Minister of Romania, Prime Minister and ''Conduc ...
as the ''
Conducător ''Conducător'' (, meaning 'Leader') was the title used officially by Romanian dictator Ion Antonescu during World War II, also occasionally used in official discourse to refer to Carol II and Nicolae Ceaușescu. History The word is derived from ...
''. Herseni, emerging as a "major propagandist"
Daniel Chirot Daniel Chirot (born 1942) is an American historian and writer on Russia. He is the Herbert J. Ellison Professor of Russian and Eurasian Studies at the University of Washington. Chirot is also the founder of the journal '' East European Politics an ...
, ''Modern Tyrants: The Power and Prevalence of Evil in Our Age''.
Princeton University Press Princeton University Press is an independent publisher with close connections to Princeton University. Its mission is to disseminate scholarship within academia and society at large. The press was founded by Whitney Darrow, with the financial ...
, Princeton, 1995, , p. 239
and "prominent legionary ideologue",Roland Clark, "New Models, New Questions: Historiographical Approaches to the Romanian Holocaust", in the ''
European Review of History The ''European Review of History'' (French: ''Revue européenne d'histoire'') is a peer-reviewed history journal. It covers all disciplines, geographic regions, and chronological periods of history, with a focus on the history of the European co ...
'', Vol. 19, Issue 2, 2012, p. 310
saluted the takeover in his articles for the Guardist paper ''
Cuvântul ''Cuvântul'' (, meaning "The Word") was a daily newspaper, published by philosopher Nae Ionescu in Bucharest, Romania, from 1926 to 1934, and again in 1938. It was primarily noted for progressively adopting a far-right and fascist agenda, an ...
''. In December 1940, he paid homage to the Legionary Commandant,
Horia Sima Horia Sima (3 July 1906 – 25 May 1993) was a Romanian fascist politician, best known as the second and last leader of the fascist paramilitary movement known as the Iron Guard (also known as the Legion of the Archangel Michael). Sima was a ...
, without whom "the Movement would become an amorphous mass". In order to succeed, Sima was to be obeyed "with unbounded devotion." Herseni also contributed to the
personality cult A cult of personality, or a cult of the leader, Mudde, Cas and Kaltwasser, Cristóbal Rovira (2017) ''Populism: A Very Short Introduction''. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 63. is the result of an effort which is made to create an ideali ...
surrounding Sima's predecessor, Codreanu, who had been assassinated by Carol; Herseni called him a "national prophet" of the "imperial ways", for whose arrival "our people have been praying for two thousand years". Codreanu's "spirit", Herseni claimed, "leads the nation to victory." He argued that Codreanu's sacrifice guaranteed "the redemption of the Romanians", but warned that "hundreds and thousands of years have prepared his birth, other hundreds and thousands of years will be necessary for the accomplishment of his commandments". Despite his radical metaphors, Herseni's ideological texts toned down Codreanu's stance on the peasant issue, reinterpreting it as a
self-help Self-help or self-improvement is "a focus on self-guided, in contrast to professionally guided, efforts to cope with life problems" —economically, physically, intellectually, or emotionally—often with a substantial psychological basis. When ...
guideline rather than as a revolutionary agenda for
land reform Land reform (also known as agrarian reform) involves the changing of laws, regulations, or customs regarding land ownership, land use, and land transfers. The reforms may be initiated by governments, by interested groups, or by revolution. Lan ...
. ''Cuvântul'' also hosted Herseni's articles on the merger of eugenics and racism, for "the betterment of the human race". He declared that Romanians were, at core, part of the "
Nordic race The Nordic race is an obsolete racial classification of humans based on a now-disproven theory of biological race. It was once considered a race or one of the putative sub-races into which some late-19th to mid-20th century anthropologists di ...
", which accounted for "the most noble Romanian cultural productions", but that "the race lost its purity". Herseni suggested a "racial purification", and a formal policy of
racial segregation Racial segregation is the separation of people into race (human classification), racial or other Ethnicity, ethnic groups in daily life. Segregation can involve the spatial separation of the races, and mandatory use of different institutions, ...
as "a question of life and death". Crediting "the genius of
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was the dictator of Nazi Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his suicide in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the lea ...
" as in inspiration, he proposed the
compulsory sterilization Compulsory sterilization, also known as forced or coerced sterilization, refers to any government-mandated program to involuntarily sterilize a specific group of people. Sterilization removes a person's capacity to reproduce, and is usually do ...
of "inferior races", specifically the Jews,
Romanies {{Infobox ethnic group , group = Romani people , image = , image_caption = , flag = Roma flag.svg , flag_caption = Romani flag created in 1933 and accepted at the 1971 World Romani Congress , po ...
and
Greeks Greeks or Hellenes (; , ) are an ethnic group and nation native to Greece, Greek Cypriots, Cyprus, Greeks in Albania, southern Albania, Greeks in Turkey#History, Anatolia, parts of Greeks in Italy, Italy and Egyptian Greeks, Egypt, and to a l ...
, "as a tribute to beauty, to morality, and in general to perfection." "The decline of the Romanian people", Herseni claimed, "owes itself to the infiltration in our ethnic group of inferior racial elements interbreeding with the blood of urancestors". Historian Radu Ioanid sees these musings as samples of "a typically fascist mentality", in which "the incitement to crime clothes itself in fanciful language." According to scholar
Maria Bucur Maria Bucur (born 2 September 1968 in Bucharest, Romania) is an American-Romanian historian of modern Eastern Europe and gender in the twentieth century. She has written on the history of eugenics in Eastern Europe, memory and war in twentieth-cen ...
, the racial legislation introduced at the time suggests "some links" to Herseni and Făcăoaru's "aggressively restrictive positions"; Făcăoaru is known to have had a more direct involvement in this program. Scholar M. Benjamin Thorne also notes that, among Iron Guard figures, Herseni and Liviu Stan stood out for their
Romaphobia Anti-Romani sentiment (also called antigypsyism, anti-Romanyism, antiziganism, ziganophobia, or Romaphobia) is an ideology which consists of hostility, prejudice, discrimination, racism, and xenophobia which is specifically directed at Romani ...
; their identification of the Romanies as racial enemies had no precedent in Guardist discourse. Herseni was chosen for high office in the new bureaucracy, serving as Secretary General of a combined
Ministry of Education An education ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for education. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of Education, Department of Education, and Ministry of Pub ...
and
Culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...
, seconding Minister Brăileanu. He countersigned an order by Antonescu and Brăileanu for the demotion and arrest of
Petre Andrei Petre Andrei (June 29, 1891 – October 4, 1940) was a Romanian sociologist, philosopher, and politician who served as Education Minister in 1938–1940. Biography Origins and work He was born in Brăila, the fourth child of a family of low-rank ...
, the previous Minister of Education, who was thus shamed into committing suicide. Herseni soon found himself drawn into the conflict between Sima and Antonescu, over the appointment of Guard loyalists at the ''
Accademia di Romania The Romanian Academy in Rome (, ) is a research institution under the aegis of the Romanian Academy, founded in 1920 by an initiative of archaeologist Vasile Pârvan and historian Nicolae Iorga. The site of the Romanian Academy in Rome is on the ...
'' (Antonescu wanted the old regime figures to be kept in place). By the close of 1940, Herseni and Făcăoaru were co-opted by Rector Panaitescu on the university review commission, whose mission was to purge academia of undesirables in general, and in particular of former National Renaissance Front dignitaries. Herseni was thus a participant in the decisions to expel or demote a number of scholars: Ralea, historian Constantin C. Giurescu, philologist
George Călinescu George Călinescu (; 19 June 1899 – 12 March 1965) was a Romanian literary critic, historian, novelist, academician and journalist, and a writer of classicist and humanist tendencies. He is currently considered one of the most important Romani ...
, and classicist
Alexandru Rosetti Alexandru Rosetti (October 20, 1895 – February 27, 1990) was a Romanian linguist, editor, and memoirist. Born in Bucharest, his parents were Petre Rosetti Bălănescu, a lawyer and landowner, and his wife Zoe (''née'' Cornescu), whose father w ...
. The same commission also looked into cases of low-ranking staff members, suspect for being Jewish or associating with Jews: it expelled
George Emil Palade George Emil Palade (; November 19, 1912 – October 7, 2008) was a Romanian-American cell biologist.Archived< ...
for his "links with the Jews" and "immoral behavior", and nearly demoted
Tudor Vianu Tudor Vianu (; January 8, 1898 – May 21, 1964) was a Romanian literary criticism, literary critic, art critic, poet, philosopher, academic, and translation, translator. He had a major role on the reception and development of Modernism in Liter ...
, on grounds that "kikes cannot educate the Romanian youth". Credited with having intervened in Vianu's favor, Herseni recused himself from the case against Gusti, noting that he owed him his career in academia.Boia, p. 182


The Antonescu years

Ralea was arrested by the authorities during November 1940, and possibly slated for an extrajudicial killing by he Guard, but (according to his own testimony) Herseni intervened and rescued his life. According to his friend Pandrea, Herseni himself was eventually sidelined by the National Legionary regime, after being denounced by lecturer Sorin Pavel—who had married Herseni's sister.
Petre Pandrea Petre Pandrea, pen name of Petre Ion Marcu, also known as Petru Marcu Balș (26 June 1904 – 8 July 1968), was a Romanian social philosopher, lawyer, and political activist, also noted as an essayist, journalist, and memoirist. A native of rural ...
, ''Memoriile mandarinului valah. Jurnal I: 1954–1956'', Editura Vremea, Bucharest, 2011, , p. 428
In January 1941, the Guard and Antonescu went to war with each other, in what was termed the " Legionary Rebellion"; Antonescu emerged victorious. Herseni, now perceived as a "moderate" or "decent" Guardist, was able to escape the subsequent purge, and made his peace with the new military regime. Reportedly, he resumed his contacts with Ralea, assuring him that Sima, by then disgraced and in exile, had tried to curb his own party's violence. In May of that year, ''Revista de Studii Sociologice și Muncitorești'' hosted Herseni's homage piece to the economist
Virgil Madgearu Virgil Traian N. Madgearu (; December 14, 1887 – November 27, 1940) was a Romanian economist, sociologist, and left-wing politician, prominent member and main theorist of the Peasants' Party and of its successor, the National Peasants' Par ...
, who had been murdered by the Guard a year before. A year later, ''Sociologie Românească'' published Herseni's posthumous tribute to Andrei, referring to his "great stature" and "untimely death". He resumed his scientific contribution with a treatise on the sociology of
pastoralism Pastoralism is a form of animal husbandry where domesticated animals (known as "livestock") are released onto large vegetated outdoor lands (pastures) for grazing, historically by nomadic people who moved around with their herds. The anim ...
(''Tratat de sociologie pastorală''), sponsored by the
Romanian Academy The Romanian Academy ( ) is a cultural forum founded in Bucharest, Romania, in 1866. It covers the scientific, artistic and literary domains. The academy has 181 active members who are elected for life. According to its bylaws, the academy's ma ...
, which was in some part a polemical study of
folkloristics Folklore studies (also known as folkloristics, tradition studies or folk life studies in the UK) is the academic discipline devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currency in the 1950s to distinguish the ac ...
. Herseni condemned folklorists for working "at random", and asserted that ethnography in general needed to submit itself to the sociological method. He also contributed a chapter on Romanian sociology, including a sketch on himself, to a history of Romanian philosophy, put out in 1941 by
Nicolae Bagdasar Nicolae Bagdasar (5 February 1896–21 April 1971) was a Romanian philosopher. Born to a peasant family north of Bârlad, he fought in World War I before attending the University of Bucharest and going on to earn a doctorate in Germany. He en ...
. He justified his own inclusion by noting that "our erseni'ssociological activity has been recorded, through not always praised, by the country's greatest sociologists and a few foreign ones". Herseni also sketched there the results of his epistemological inquiries: society was an objective inner reality, "the sense of an ''us''", leading to the emergence of a "social community" that was therefore not biological, but spiritual. On this basis, Herseni read society as both a "spiritually objective" reality and a structural-functional one, and thus as an autonomous object of science. Since June 1941, Romania had joined
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
in its
invasion of the Soviet Union Operation Barbarossa was the invasion of the Soviet Union by Nazi Germany and several of its European Axis allies starting on Sunday, 22 June 1941, during World War II. More than 3.8 million Axis troops invaded the western Soviet Union along a ...
. From January 1942, Herseni was behind the lines on the Eastern Front, in the newly occupied
Transnistria Governorate The Transnistria Governorate () was a Romanian-administered territory between the Dniester and Southern Bug, conquered by the Axis Powers from the Soviet Union during Operation Barbarossa. A Romanian civilian administration governed the territo ...
. Reportedly, his mission was to set up schools for the Romanian communities. He was also mandated by Governor
Gheorghe Alexianu Gheorghe Alexianu (January 1, 1897 – 1 June 1946) was a Romanian lawyer, high school teacher and associate professor who served as governor of Transnistria between 1941 and 1944. In 1946, he was accused and convicted of war crimes, crim ...
to carry out a large ethnographic project, recording Romanian Transnistrian customs. The endeavor, which also involved Golopenția and
Nichita Smochină Nichita Smochină (; Moldovan Cyrillic alphabet, Moldovan Cyrillic: Никита Смокинэ, Russian language, Russian: Никита Парфеньевич Смокина, ''Nikita Parfenievich Smokina''; also known as Mihai Florin; 14 March 1 ...
, resulted in ethnographic collections by Gheorghe Pavelescu and C. A. Ionescu, with prefaces by Herseni himself. Resigning from the ISR that same year, Herseni moved to
Sibiu Sibiu ( , , , Hungarian: ''Nagyszeben'', , Transylvanian Saxon: ''Härmeschtat'' or ''Hermestatt'') is a city in central Romania, situated in the historical region of Transylvania. Located some north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles th ...
to teach "national sociology" at the University of Cluj. The latter had been evacuated from its namesake city, in Northern Transylvania. As a eugenicist, Herseni also presided over a department of " sanitary sociology" at Sibiu's Hygiene and Public Health Institute. He was also interested in what he termed "administrative sociology". The official journal of Internal Affairs carried his topical essay, in which Herseni also called for a purely Romanian style of governance. During July–August 1944, Herseni organized another survey of folk traditions in southern Transnistria, having set up a research institute within
Odessa University The Odesa I.I.Mechnykov National University (), often referred to as Odesa National University ( ONU, ), located in Odesa, Ukraine, is one of that country's major state-sponsored universities, named after the scientist Élie Metchnikoff (1845- ...
. In early 1944, during the Soviet offensive in Transnistria, Herseni was spotted in Berezovca County, on an official mission to destroy records of the mass killings of Jews. In September 1944, after the coup which toppled Antonescu and introduced a
Soviet occupation During World War II, the Soviet Union occupied and annexed several countries effectively handed over by Nazi Germany in the secret Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact of 1939. These included the eastern regions of Poland (incorporated into three differe ...
, he was altogether suspended from academia. He was arrested by the ''Siguranța'' during a round-up, but in December he was among the 107 Guardists paroled and allowed to visit their families. The fact became known to the communist press, and prompted the Sănătescu government to arrest those responsible, including Colonel Manolescu. Herseni's ethnographic research immediately became taboo: the study he wrote with Ionescu was printed at Sibiu in December 1944, but simply as a collection of generic '' colinde''. All detail permitting localization in Transnistria was stricken out by the censors.Băieșu, p. 110; Popa (2020), p. 111


Imprisonment, marginalization, recovery

Herseni's name was published on a list of 65 former dignitaries indicted by the Rădescu government as responsible for "bringing disaster upon the country". He was subsequently re-arrested on January 29, 1945, but released a while after.Octavian Roske (ed.), ''Mecanisme represive în România 1945–1989. Dicționar biografic H–L'', Bucharest, National Institute for the Study of Totalitarianism, 2004, , p. 87 Expelled from his Cluj University chair in July 1945, he managed to publish one more brochure, with Editura Clujana of Bucharest: ''Originile sociologiei'' ("The Origins of Sociology"). Herseni's sister died of cancer that same year, leaving Herseni's nephews with almost no means to support themselves. Herseni himself was reportedly still working at the Hygiene and Public Health Institute in early 1946. This caught the eye of a
National Liberal National liberalism is a variant of liberalism, combining liberal policies and issues with elements of nationalism. Historically, national liberalism has also been used in the same meaning as conservative liberalism (right-liberalism). A serie ...
minister, Mihail Romaniceanu, who asked his colleagues to explain why a "prominent Guardist" was still eligible for such offices, whereas lesser ones were being purged. Again arrested on May 4, 1951, Herseni was tried for his role in the National Legionary administration, with Vianu showing up to defend him as a character witness. Sentenced to four years in prison, he did time in
Jilava Jilava is a commune in Ilfov County, Muntenia, Romania, near Bucharest. It is composed of a single village, Jilava. The name derives from a Romanian word of Slavic origin ( Bulgarian жилав ''žilav'' (tough), which passed into Romanian as ...
and
Aiud Aiud (; , , Hungarian pronunciation: ; ) is a city located in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. The city's population is 21,307 (2021). It has the status of municipiu. The city derives its name ultimately from Saint Giles (Aegidius), to whom t ...
penitentiaries, before being released on September 29, 1955. He still remained under an interdiction to publish and was entirely marginalized in society, turning to
ghostwriting A ghostwriter is a person hired to write literature, literary or journalism, journalistic works, speeches, or other texts that are credited to another person as the author. Celebrities, executives, participants in timely news stories, and pol ...
for more politically suitable scholars. Eugen Negrici, ''Iluziile literaturii române''.
Cartea Românească Cartea Românească ("The Romanian Book") is a publishing house in Bucharest, Romania, founded in 1919. Disestablished by the communist regime in 1948, it was restored under later communism, in 1970, when it functioned as the official imprint of t ...
, Bucharest, 2008, , p. 267
His old political enemy, Ralea, decided to include Herseni on his research team at the Romanian Academy's new Psychology Institute from 1956.
Securitate The Department of State Security (), commonly known as the Securitate (, ), was the secret police agency of the Socialist Republic of Romania. It was founded on 30 August 1948 from the '' Siguranța'' with help and direction from the Soviet MG ...
sources report that he was the person actually in charge of that foundation, since Ralea would only appear there for a couple of hours per week. Herseni was officially only a regional director, and had a similar office at the Anthropological Center (both 1958).Stahl (1980), pp. 698, 702 He was undergoing a slow rehabilitation, possibly facilitated by Communist Party activist
Miron Constantinescu Miron Constantinescu (13 December 1917 – 18 July 1974) was a Romanian communist politician, a leading member of the Romanian Communist Party (PCR, known as PMR for a period of his lifetime), as well as a Marxist sociologist, historian, academic ...
. A former Gustian, turned Marxist-Leninist doctrinaire, Constantinescu had assigned himself the task of selectively reconsidering "reactionary" sociology. Constantinescu maintained contacts with Herseni, Stahl, Vlădescu-Răcoasa and
Teodor Bugnariu Teodor is a masculine given name. In English, it is a cognate of Theodore. Notable people with the name include: * Teodor Andrault de Langeron (19th century), President of Warsaw * Teodor Andrzej Potocki (1664–1738), Polish nobleman * Teodor An ...
, and prepared himself for the revival of the sociological school, with inputs from
Marxist sociology Marxist sociology refers to the application of Marxist epistemologies within the study of sociology. It can often be economic sociology, political sociology or cultural sociology. Marxism itself is recognised as both a political philosophy and ...
. By 1958, Herseni was in correspondence with G. T. Kirileanu, a former librarian of the royal court, who was asking him to look after books he had donated to the Academy. As argued by historian Constantin Prangati, this also made him part of a clandestine intellectual network which "supported national culture, defending the Romanians' language and history, while maintaining faith in the arrival of better times"; other members were Giurescu,
Iorgu Iordan Iorgu Iordan (; also known as ''Jorgu Jordan'' or ''Iorgu Jordan''; – September 20, 1986) was a Romanian linguist, philologist, diplomat, journalist, and left-wing agrarian, later communist, politician. The author of works on a large variety o ...
,
Simion Mehedinți Simion Mehedinți (; October 19, 1868 – December 14, 1962) was a Romanian geographer, the founding father of modern Romanian geography, and a titular member of the Romanian Academy. A figure of importance in the ''Junimea'' literary club, ...
, and
Dan Simonescu Dan Simonescu (born Dan Simon, also known as Simionescu and Simon Dănescu; December 11, 1902 March 10, 1993) was a Romanian literary historian, bibliographer, folklorist, and librarian. His debut was in his late teens, when he accompanied Consta ...
. Organizing research trips in
Hunedoara Region Hunedoara (; ; ) is a municipiu, city in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. It is located in southwestern Transylvania near the Poiana Ruscă Mountains, and administers five villages: Boș (''Bós''), Groș (''Grós''), Hășdat (''Hosdát ...
, at Clopotiva, Herseni published essays on family sociology and
genealogy Genealogy () is the study of families, family history, and the tracing of their lineages. Genealogists use oral interviews, historical records, genetic analysis, and other records to obtain information about a family and to demonstrate kin ...
in a 1958 collection edited by
Ștefan Milcu Ștefan is the Romanian language, Romanian form of Stephen, used as both a given name and a surname. For the English language, English version, see Stefan (given name), Stefan. Some better known people with the name Ștefan are listed below. For a ...
. He produced a thesis according to which Romanians of that area were "always the overwhelming majority", having effortlessly Romanianized their Hungarian neighbors since the 1600s. As noted in 2014 by ethnologist Marin Constantin, Herseni's approach to the topic evidenced a throwback to the Gusti sociological narrative, being Romanian-centered and "self-referential". Historian of medicine
Marius Turda Marius may refer to: People * Marius (name), a male given name, a Roman clan name and family name, and a modern name or surname *Gaius Marius (–86 BC), Roman statesman, seven times consul. * Marcus Aurelius Marius, emperor of the Gallic Empire, ...
writes that Romanian communist social science was folding back on racial science, a "national biology involving notions of racial differentiation, cycles of growth and decay, genetic genealogies, the interconnectedness of nurture and nature". The changing political climate allowed anthropologists "to reposition autochthonous ideas within their discipline"; Herseni, "an important Legionary sociologist", "provides an exemplary case of post-war re-adaptation, professionally and theoretically." Bucur similarly argues that Herseni stands as a prime example of an "openly racist" eugenicist whom the communist regime was able to recover for its own propaganda purposes.Bucur, p. 44 Turda traces the links between the fascist ideologist and the communist anthropologist: "Although the general topic Herseni reflected on was genetic genealogies, his main argument focused on the importance of ethnic anthropology in connecting forms of the nation's micro and macro physical development over time." The same continuity is noted by historians Alexandru Sonoc and Alexandru Grișcan, who view Herseni's description of the Romanian ethnos as a "somatic type" as "doubtlessly racist".Alexandru Gh. Sonoc, Alexandru Grișcan, "Clișee mitologizante din istoria geto-dacilor în context aniversar (1986)", in ''Brvkenthal. Acta Mvsei'', Vol. III, Issue 1, 2008, pp. 128–129, 147 Herseni thus intended to return to his 1940 research and find a way to republish its early results (the papers were by then stored at the
Brukenthal National Museum The Brukenthal National Museum (; ) is a museum in Sibiu, Transylvania, Romania, established in the late 18th century by Samuel von Brukenthal (1721-1803) in his city palace. Baron Brukenthal, governor of the Grand Principality of Transylvan ...
in Sibiu). In 1961, he contributed to Milcu's monograph on the rural society of
Bătrâna Bătrâna (; , ) is a commune in Hunedoara County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Bătrâna, Fața Roșie, Piatra, and Răchițaua. As per the 2022 census, the commune had 88 inhabitants, making it the smallest Romanian ...
, focusing on its peculiar inheritance and
elderly care Elderly care, or simply eldercare (also known in parts of the English-speaking world as aged care), serves the needs of old adults. It encompasses assisted living, adult daycare, long-term care, nursing homes (often called residential care), ...
practices. His work in the field also resulted in a historical anthropology essay, which rediscovered the pioneering work of
Pavel Vasici-Ungureanu Pavel Vasici-Ungureanu (April 18, 1806–July 3, 1881) was an Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian Romanians, ethnic Romanian physician. Biography Origins and education He was born into a poor family in Timișoara, then part of the Austrian Empi ...
. Ralea, who had been fully integrated among the post-war Marxists, also co-opted Herseni for projects in
social psychology Social psychology is the methodical study of how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. Although studying many of the same substantive topics as its counterpart in the field ...
. Reportedly, Ralea excused Herseni by arguing that he had only joined the Guard in hopes of being rewarded with
tenure Tenure is a type of academic appointment that protects its holder from being fired or laid off except for cause, or under extraordinary circumstances such as financial exigency or program discontinuation. Academic tenure originated in the United ...
. At the time, the mainline communists put on hold their project to uproot sociology as a bourgeois science: "a significant thaw occurred". Together, Ralea and Herseni published a 1962 tract, ''Sociologia succesului'' ("The Sociology of Success"), for which Herseni used the pseudonym ''Traian Hariton''. This praise of collectivism and economic incentives under the
socialist mode of production The socialist mode of production, also known as socialism or communism, is a specific historical phase of economic development and its corresponding set of social relations that emerge from capitalism in the schema of historical materialism wit ...
was reviewed with skepticism by the Romanian exile psychologist Edgar Krau, who notes that Ralea and "Hariton" had failed to even mention "the all-pervading ommunistparty tuition" as a possible disturbance of data. Locally, the book was famous for including a reference to sociology in its very title, the first such work to be allowed under communism; this was one of several "surprising signs of political openness and of sociology's acceptance."Zamfir ''et al.'', p. 7 Ralea and Herseni also heralded a departure from the more intransigent anti-American propaganda of the 1950s, reintegrating some positive references to American sociology.


Return to prominence

Shortly after making his return to publishing, Herseni was set to be reactivated as a political writer, at the regime's behest. In early 1963, the propaganda magazine ''
Glasul Patriei ''Glasul Patriei'' (Romanian for 'The Voice of the Fatherland') was Communist Romania's propaganda publication aimed at Romanian emigres, that served the aim of promoting the Socialist Republic of Romania as a harbour not only of socialist ideas, ...
'' was scheduled to reemerge as a venue for reformed and reeducated Iron Guardists; Herseni was reportedly assigned to work on an essay called ''O eroare fundamentală: concepția legionară despre muncitorime și țărănime'' ("A Fundamental Error: The Legionary Take on Workers and Peasants"). The same magazine ultimately featured his regular contributions by 1966. Like Ralea and Stahl, Herseni was becoming a noted supporter of the
national communist National communism is a term describing various forms in which Marxism–Leninism and socialism has been adopted and/or implemented by leaders in different countries using aspects of nationalism or national identity to form a policy independent ...
, anti-Soviet, party line, promoted officially by the old party leadership from 1964, and subsequently taken up by the new General Secretary,
Nicolae Ceaușescu Nicolae Ceaușescu ( ; ;  – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian politician who was the second and last Communism, communist leader of Socialist Romania, Romania, serving as the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 u ...
. Herseni also involved himself in debates about the future of sociology, defending the science against criticism, and arguing that sociologists could answer specific problems that could not be addressed by statisticians or economists. While gaining leverage with Ralea, he had lost backing from Constantinescu, who perceived him as a personal rival and, possibly, as a superior thinker, and worked to keep him away from sociological research. Herseni worked instead with Bugnariu, with whom he co-authored an essay on the history of Gustian sociology, which appeared in ''
Contemporanul ''Contemporanul'' (''The Contemporary'') was a Romanian literary magazine published in Iaşi, Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukrain ...
'' in October 1964. After 1965, when he entered a new period of prolific writing, Herseni sought to accumulate direct knowledge in the field of
industrial sociology Industrial sociology, until recently a crucial research area within the field of sociology of work, examines "the direction and implications of trends in technological change, globalization, labour markets, work organization, managerial practic ...
, reviving and adapting Gusti's (and his own) interwar methodology: a monographic "problem-centered" technique, and a focus on interdisciplinarity.Stahl (1980), p. 702 As noted by historian Valentin Săndulescu, he thus wanted to show himself useful to a "potentially valuable" project, that of organizing socialist enterprises. In a 1968 piece, literary critic Radu Negru proposed that: "One should not fully discount sociologists such as Dimitrie Gusti or Traian Herseni for their deformed political temptations f the interwar. As Bucur notes, Herseni was by then in a position where he himself generated "the new Marxist-Leninist normative discourse". In 1967, '' Familia'' published his article expressing affinities with the Marxist doctrinaire Athanase Joja; the piece also stated that he had always held quasi-Marxist opinions. Such claims were disputed in the official Marxist journal, ''Lupta de Clasă'', by A. Crișan, who noted: "Traian Herseni has the merit of having made great progress these past years, when it comes to assuming a scientific position in philosophy and sociology. However, when it comes to comparing his views of 1934 with the Marxist worldview, matters should be clearly separated." Four years later, Herseni was arguing that Gusti's sociological school had represented a "collective reaction of our progressive intellectuals against fascist infiltration". This verdict too was disputed by Nicolae S. Dumitru, who noted that it had no grounding in fact; he rates the school as "bourgeois" with "some Marxist tendencies", but not truly anti-fascist. In 1968, Herseni was allowed to travel abroad, to Paris. There, he reunited with
Emil Cioran Emil Mihai Cioran (; ; ; 8 April 1911 – 20 June 1995) was a Romanian philosopher, aphorist and essayist, who published works in both Romanian and French. His work has been noted for its pervasive philosophical pessimism, style, and aphorism ...
, but failed to meet with
Eugène Ionesco Eugène Ionesco (; ; born Eugen Ionescu, ; 26 November 1909 – 28 March 1994) was a Romanian-French playwright who wrote mostly in French, and was one of the foremost figures of the French avant-garde theatre#Avant-garde, French avant-garde th ...
, as transport had been disrupted by strikes and student riots. Back at the institute, he compiled the life histories of 550 industry workers, documenting their departure from an "axial" family and their contact with modernity. Herseni's work in social psychology resulted in a definitive treatise, ''Psihologie socială'', co-authored with Ralea and published in 1966, shortly after Ralea's death. In 1967, ''Contemporanul'' hosted Herseni's essay about the old-regime politician
Spiru Haret Spiru C. Haret (; 15 February 1851 – 17 December 1912) was a Romanian mathematician, astronomer, and politician. He made a fundamental contribution to the ''n''-body problem in celestial mechanics by proving that using a third degree approx ...
, highlighting his contribution to
progressive education Progressive education, or educational progressivism, is a pedagogical movement that began in the late 19th century and has persisted in various forms to the present. In Europe, progressive education took the form of the New Education Movement. T ...
and his conflict with "the ruling classes". As a columnist and sociological analyst in ''Familia'', he chronicled books by
Pierre Francastel Pierre Francastel (; 8 June 1900, Paris – 2 January 1970, Paris) was a French art historian, best known for his use of sociological method. Career Francastel's initial period of study was in literature, at the Sorbonne. He worked in building c ...
,
Herbert Read Sir Herbert Edward Read, (; 4 December 1893 – 12 June 1968) was an English art historian, poet, literary critic and philosopher, best known for numerous books on art, which included influential volumes on the role of art in education. Read wa ...
,
Jean Piaget Jean William Fritz Piaget (, ; ; 9 August 1896 – 16 September 1980) was a Swiss psychologist known for his work on child development. Piaget's theory of cognitive development and epistemological view are together called genetic epistemology. ...
,
Talcott Parsons Talcott Parsons (December 13, 1902 – May 8, 1979) was an American sociologist of the classical tradition, best known for his social action theory and structural functionalism. Parsons is considered one of the most influential figures in soci ...
, and T. R. Fyvel, as well as reintroducing his public to works by Gusti,
Virgil Bărbat Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: the ''Eclogues'' ( ...
,
Alexandru Claudian Alexandru Claudian (also rendered as Al. Claudian; April 8, 1898 – October 16, 1962) was a Romanian sociologist, political figure, and poet. A student and practitioner of Marxism, he worked as a schoolteacher, entry-level academic, field resear ...
, and
Ștefan Zeletin Ștefan Zeletin (born Ștefan Motăș; June 19, 1882 – July 20, 1934) was a Romanian philosopher, sociologist, liberal economist and political theorist. Biography Born in Răchitoasa, Burdusaci, Bacău County, his mother Catinca Motăș (' ...
. He later set himself a study case of
industrialization Industrialisation (British English, UK) American and British English spelling differences, or industrialization (American English, US) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an i ...
in
Boldești-Scăeni Boldești-Scăeni (), often spelled ''Boldești-Scăieni'', is a town in Prahova County, southern Romania. Located about north of Ploiești, it is an important oil-extraction center. It is situated in the historical region of Muntenia. History ...
, where, as Stahl recounts, "a
drilling rig A drilling rig is an integrated system that Drilling, drills wells, such as oil or water wells, or holes for piling and other construction purposes, into the earth's subsurface. Drilling rigs can be massive structures housing equipment used to ...
had been set up, radically transforming the local, rural, social landscape, spurring modernizing social processes". The result was a study in "concrete social psychology", the 1969 ''Industrializare și urbanizare'', which, according to sociologist Irina Tomescu-Dubrow, samples the "valuable work" produced in
urban sociology Urban sociology is the sociological study of cities and urban life. One of the field’s oldest sub-disciplines, urban sociology studies and examines the social, historical, political, cultural, economic, and environmental forces that have shaped ...
under communism. Additionally, the team documented decades of migration patterns, using a census, a set of questionnaires, and tools borrowed from
historical demography Historical demography is the quantitative study of human population in the past. It is concerned with population size, with the three basic components of population change (fertility Fertility in colloquial terms refers the ability to have of ...
. Also in 1969, Herseni issued ''Psihosociologia organizării întreprinderilor industriale'' ("The Psycho-sociology of Organization in Industrial Units"), at
Editura Academiei The Romanian Academy ( ) is a cultural forum founded in Bucharest, Romania, in 1866. It covers the scientific, artistic and literary domains. The academy has 181 active members who are elected for life. According to its bylaws, the academy's mai ...
, and ''Laboratorul uzinal de psihologie, sociologie și pedagogie'' ("The Industrial Laboratory of Psychology, Sociology and Pedagogy"), at Editura Științifică. Also in 1969, the same company issued Herseni's companion to
sociological theory A sociological theory is a that intends to consider, analyze, and/or explain objects of social reality from a sociological perspective,Macionis, John and Linda M. Gerber. 2010. ''Sociology'' (7th Canadian ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson ...
, ''Prolegomene la teoria sociologică''. Reviewing the work for ''
Social Research Social research is research conducted by social scientists following a systematic plan. Social research methodologies can be classified as quantitative and qualitative. * Quantitative designs approach social phenomena through quantifiable ...
'', Jiří Kolaja sensed "a very skillful adaptation of certain Marxist lines of thought though erseniappears not to be a Marxist." As noted by Kolaja, ''Prolegomene'' attempted to mediate between
individualist Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote realizing one's goals and desires, valuing independence and self-reliance, and a ...
,
structuralist Structuralism is an intellectual current and methodological approach, primarily in the social sciences, that interprets elements of human culture by way of their relationship to a broader system. It works to uncover the structural patterns tha ...
, and
phenomenological sociology Phenomenology within sociology (also social phenomenology or phenomenological sociology) examines the concept of social reality ( or "Lifeworld") as a product of intersubjectivity. Phenomenology analyses social reality in order to explain the ...
. In 1970, Herseni spoke about his sociological and political convictions in an interview with ''
Tribuna Tribuna may refer to: * ''Tribuna'' (Russian newspaper), a Russian weekly newspaper * ''Tribuna Portuguesa'', a bilingual newspaper serving the Portuguese-American community * Tribuna.com, a digital sports publisher * Tribuna Monumental, a monum ...
''. He defined himself as a committed communist, and made predictions about the communist future: "in communism, people will be less wicked than we are at present, because they shall have fewer rationales for being wicked." The interview was covered for
Radio Free Europe Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a media organization broadcasting news and analyses in 27 languages to 23 countries across Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Middle East. Headquartered in Prague since 1995, RFE/RL ...
by
Monica Lovinescu Monica Lovinescu (; 19 November 1923 – 20 April 2008) was a Romanian essayist, short story writer, literary critic, translator, and journalist, noted for her activities as an opponent of the Romanian Communist regime. She published severa ...
, the anticommunist literary critic. She noted that Herseni, with his "degraded mystical" terminology, no longer distinguished between "sociology" and "ideology". However, according to scholar
Daniel Chirot Daniel Chirot (born 1942) is an American historian and writer on Russia. He is the Herbert J. Ellison Professor of Russian and Eurasian Studies at the University of Washington. Chirot is also the founder of the journal '' East European Politics an ...
, who visited Romania during that interval, Herseni confessed to him in private:
I used to write things praising 'The Captain' and now I write pretty much the same thing, but praising Ceaușescu. I'm not a Marxist, you understand, but I have to admit that I like what he's doing.


Sociologist of literature

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, Herseni diversified his contribution, with a chapter in the pastoralist sociology treatise of Franz Ronneberger and Gerhardt Teich (1971) and an essay introducing the work of psychologist Nicolae Vaschide (1975). Other tracts were focused on defining and applying theories from the sociology of literature to a Romanian context. In the mid-1960s, his message (paraphrased by film critic Andrei Strihan) was that: "Under capitalism .. an owner is enslaved by his assets, he does not advance as a human, but as an owner, he never enriches his own personality, but accomplishes himself only through external things. ..Socialism replaces the wealth-based principle (to hold) with the existence-based principle (to be)." Herseni sketched out the project in a '' Luceafărul'' issue of 1968, welcomed there as a return to professional contributions by Ralea and Călinescu.M. Lunca, "...măsura tuturor lucrurilor...", in '' Luceafărul'', Vol. XXII, Issue 27, July 1979, p. 6 Coordinating a work called ''Psihologia culturii de masă'' ("The Psychology of Mass Culture"), which appeared the following year, Herseni set out to explain the terms of art, and described the "effects of mass culture" among Romanians. At Editura Univers, Herseni published ''Sociologia literaturii. Cîteva puncte de reper'' ("Literary Sociology. A Few Pointers", 1973), and ''Literatură și civilizație'' ("Literature and Civilization", 1976). Despite being infused with concepts borrowed from
Erich Auerbach Erich Auerbach (; 9 November 1892 – 13 October 1957) was a German philologist and comparative scholar and critic of literature. His best-known work is '' Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature'', a history of representa ...
, his contribution focused mainly on the relationship between societies and the literature they produced, and as such viewed itself as fundamentally different from
comparative literature Comparative literature studies is an academic field dealing with the study of literature and cultural expression across language, linguistic, national, geographic, and discipline, disciplinary boundaries. Comparative literature "performs a role ...
. Herseni made explicit references to "
national psychology National psychology refers to the (real or alleged) distinctive psychological make-up of particular nations, ethnic groups or peoples, and to the comparative study of those characteristics in social psychology, sociology, political science and anthr ...
",
linguistic determinism Linguistic determinism is the concept that language and its structures limit and determine human knowledge or thought, as well as thought processes such as categorization, memory, and perception. The term implies that people's native languages will ...
, and national "rhythms" of creativity, referencing the anthropological theories of
Wilhelm Wundt Wilhelm Maximilian Wundt (; ; 16 August 1832 – 31 August 1920) was a German physiologist, philosopher, and professor, one of the fathers of modern psychology. Wundt, who distinguished psychology as a science from philosophy and biology, was t ...
,
Franz Boas Franz Uri Boas (July 9, 1858 – December 21, 1942) was a German-American anthropologist and ethnomusicologist. He was a pioneer of modern anthropology who has been called the "Father of American Anthropology". His work is associated with the mov ...
,
George Murdock George Peter ("Pete") Murdock (May 11, 1897 – March 29, 1985), also known as G. P. Murdock, was an American anthropologist who was professor at Yale University and University of Pittsburgh. He is remembered for his empirical approach to ethn ...
, and
Edward Sapir Edward Sapir (; January 26, 1884 – February 4, 1939) was an American anthropologist-linguistics, linguist, who is widely considered to be one of the most important figures in the development of the discipline of linguistics in the United States ...
. He argued that structuralism was a relevant paradigm for the study of culture, but only if subsumed to "national specificity". Overall, Herseni theorized that art and literature were collective in nature, originating from "imitation" (or ''
mimesis Mimesis (; , ''mīmēsis'') is a term used in literary criticism and philosophy that carries a wide range of meanings, including '' imitatio'', imitation, similarity, receptivity, representation, mimicry, the act of expression, the act of ...
'') rather than sublimation. Inspired by
Lucien Lévy-Bruhl Lucien Lévy-Bruhl (; 10 April 1857 – 13 March 1939) was a French scholar trained in philosophy who furthered anthropology with his contributions to the budding fields of sociology and ethnology. His primary field interest was ways of thinking. ...
,
Constantin Noica Constantin Noica (; – 4 December 1987) was a Romanian philosopher, essayist and poet. His preoccupations were throughout all philosophy, from epistemology, philosophy of culture, axiology and philosophic anthropology to ontology and logics ...
,
Mircea Eliade Mircea Eliade (; – April 22, 1986) was a Romanian History of religion, historian of religion, fiction writer, philosopher, and professor at the University of Chicago. One of the most influential scholars of religion of the 20th century and in ...
,
Ruth Benedict Ruth Fulton Benedict (June 5, 1887 – September 17, 1948) was an American anthropologist and folklorist. She was born in New York City, attended Vassar College, and graduated in 1909. After studying anthropology at the New School of Social ...
, and
James George Frazer Sir James George Frazer (; 1 January 1854 – 7 May 1941) was a Scottish social anthropologist and folkloristJosephson-Storm (2017), Chapter 5. influential in the early stages of the modern studies of mythology and comparative religion. ...
, Herseni described language and early poetry as interconnected with
folk religion Folk religion, traditional religion, or vernacular religion comprises, according to religious studies and folkloristics, various forms and expressions of religion that are distinct from the official doctrines and practices of organized religion. ...
, and especially with magic. The works also contained methodological proposals for the research of reading habits, with a typology borrowed from
André Maurois André Maurois (; born Émile Salomon Wilhelm Herzog; 26 July 1885 – 9 October 1967) was a French author. Biography Maurois was born on 26 July 1885 in Elbeuf and educated at the Lycée Pierre Corneille in Rouen, both in Normandy. A member of ...
. As noted in 2008 by scholar Eugen Negrici, such writings are also intertwined with the official dogmas of national communism: "still haunted by his old fears, ersenitried to look his best in front of the communist authorities, providing his sociological perspective—one saturated with Marxist cliches—on Romanian literature". By contrast, sociologist Florența Stăvărache argues that Herseni introduced "fissures" in official dogma with his "critical note on how literary doctrines and ideologies were all dealt with through the lens of 'Marxism-Leninism'."Stăvărache, p. 168 Also according to Stăvărache, Herseni's musings about the "social responsibility of writers" and the possibility of their "constrained political engagement" were "evidently alluding to his contemporaries". She criticizes Herseni's abundant use of "erudite" referencing, noting that it made the work outdated: working from inside a "captive society", Herseni had had access to Lévy-Bruhl, but not to his critics. Herseni took his pension from the Psychology Institute in 1973, but carried on with his work in sociology and anthropology. His studies of industrial sociology were bound together as ''Psihologia colectivelor de muncă'' ("The Psychology of Working Collectives", Editura Academiei, 1973) and an eponymous textbook: ''Sociologia industrială'' ( Editura Didactică și Pedagogică, 1974). According to Stahl, this was both a "world-level work" and a monograph of "our country's real issues", "the result of direct experiences". Herseni's original drafts were "apolitical", treating
industrial relations Industrial relations or employment relations is the multidisciplinary academic field that studies the employment relationship; that is, the complex interrelations between employers and employees, labor union, labor/trade unions, employer organ ...
as indistinct from socialist to capitalist countries, and were revised by censors to comply with the party line. Also in 1974, Herseni contributed to an Editura Științifică collection on industrial-sociological laboratories, with a study of social engineering techniques.Stahl (1980), p. 704 The following year, returning to his native region, he contributed to a monograph on the Făgăraș Chemical Plant.


Final years

During the early 1970s, in essays he wrote for Constantinescu's ''Sociologia Militans'' archive, Herseni explained his intention of transcending rural sociology, applying its lessons to understanding (or generating)
social actions In sociology, social action, also known as Weberian social action, is an act which takes into account the actions and reactions of individuals (or ' agents'). According to Max Weber, "Action is 'social' insofar as its subjective meaning takes acc ...
in the national sphere, and, beyond, in
geopolitics Geopolitics () is the study of the effects of Earth's geography on politics and international relations. Geopolitics usually refers to countries and relations between them, it may also focus on two other kinds of State (polity), states: ''de fac ...
. In 1976, he completed his "paleoethnographic" study about the "posses" of Țara Oltului, published by
Editura Dacia Editura Dacia ('Dacia Publishing House') is a publishing house based in Romania, located on Pavel Chinezul Street 2, Cluj-Napoca. Named after the ancient region of Dacia, it was founded in 1969 by a group of Transylvanian intellectuals, and printe ...
as ''Forme străvechi de cultură poporană românească'' ("Ancient Forms of Romanian Folk Culture"). As noted by Stahl, it evidenced "an essential change in his preoccupations", bringing with it Herseni's formal inclusion in the community of Romanian folklorists. The book series also signified a break with the Gustian tradition of strict sociology, turning to
cultural anthropology Cultural anthropology is a branch of anthropology focused on the study of cultural variation among humans. It is in contrast to social anthropology, which perceives cultural variation as a subset of a posited anthropological constant. The term ...
, which the young Herseni had criticized repeatedly. Commenting on this conversion, Stahl concluded that Herseni remained "an enigma". ''Forme străvechi'' claimed to show that the posses were "a vestige of ancient Geto-Dacian beliefs and practices, which still preserve some pre-Indo-European elements." Taking Romanian onomastics as his point of departure, Herseni argued that Romanians conserved a belief in the ''
Tellus Mater In ancient Roman religion and mythology, Tellus, Terra or Tierra ("Mother Earth") is the personification of the Earth. Although Tellus and Terra are hardly distinguishable during the Imperial era, ''Tellus'' was the name of the original earth go ...
'' and reincarnation within the family. Parts of the work recorded the localization of Christmas, including the "dilution" of an older pagan holiday, or posited that, in the folk psyche, the
Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...
had replaced
Bendis Bendis () was a Thracian goddess associated with hunting and the moon. Worship of the goddess seems to have been introduced into Attica around 430 BC. In Athens, Bendis was identified with the goddess Artemis, but she had a separate temple at ...
; in the ancient ballad ''
Miorița "Miorița" (ad. ''mioriță'', lit. 'The Little Ewe Lamb'), also transliterated as "Mioritza", is an old Romanian pastoral ballad considered to be one of the most important pieces of Romanian folklore. It has numerous versions with quite differe ...
'', he identified an opposition between
patriarchy Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of authority are primarily held by men. The term ''patriarchy'' is used both in anthropology to describe a family or clan controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males, and in fem ...
and
matriarchy Matriarchy is a social system in which positions of Power (social and political), power and Social privilege, privilege are held by women. In a broader sense it can also extend to moral authority, social privilege, and control of property. Whil ...
, as embodied, respectively, by the Sun and Moon. He also reviewed and categorized 400 '' colinde'' of Țara Oltului, noting that 88 of them had Christian "non-canonical" content, and another 124 where entirely non- or pre-Christian. Some of Herseni's views on the matter remain particularly controversial. According to Negrici, the book shows Herseni as a convert to
protochronism Dacianism is a Romanian term describing the tendency to ascribe, largely relying on questionable data and subjective interpretation, an idealised past to the country as a whole. While particularly prevalent during the regime of Nicolae Ceaușes ...
, the communist doctrine (blended with "the undigested residues of the interwar right") which supposed Romanian cultural superiority and ancient pedigree. Herseni "endorses the thesis that Romanian civilization, albeit rural and oral, is by no means inferior to the literate civilizations that were cultivated in citadels and towns." Another topic of criticism was Herseni's claim to have discovered an unknown statute of the posses, by
Ion Codru-Drăgușanu Ion Codru-Drăgușanu (November 9, 1818–October 26, 1884) was an Austro-Hungarian ethnic Romanian prose writer. He was born in Drăguș, Brașov County, in the Transylvania region. His parents were Adam Plăiaș Codru or Adam al lui German ...
, which had in fact been studied decades earlier. Herseni died in Bucharest in July 1980. On July 19, he was buried in the Catholic section of
Bellu Cemetery Șerban Vodă Cemetery (commonly known as Bellu Cemetery) is the largest and most famous cemetery in Bucharest, Romania. It is located on a plot of land donated to the local administration by Baron Barbu Bellu. It has been in use since 1858. T ...
. News of this reached Cioran in September, leaving him distraught at the loss of his friend of youth. His last published works include a French-language essay on the Dacian Draco, in which he argued that
dragons A dragon is a magical legendary creature that appears in the folklore of multiple cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in Western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depict ...
or '' zmei'' were among the "primordial beings" of local mythology. According to Paula Gusty-Herseni, his lifetime output comprised 541 works of social science, of which 29 were volumes (although, Stahl cautions, their content often overlapped); Achim Mihu, who republished some of Herseni's works, counts 543. One of his final contributions was the historical study ''Cultura psihologică românească'' ("Romanian Psychological Culture"), which sought to establish a link between an ancient national psychology and the development of psychology as a modern science. Additionally, Herseni contributed a chapter in
Romulus Vulcănescu Romulus (, ) was the legendary founder and first king of Rome. Various traditions attribute the establishment of many of Rome's oldest legal, political, religious, and social institutions to Romulus and his contemporaries. Although many of the ...
's introduction to
ethnology Ethnology (from the , meaning 'nation') is an academic field and discipline that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural, social, or sociocultural anthropology). Sci ...
, a specialized field which Herseni wanted to delimit from both anthropology and sociology as "the science of folk phenomena". He also left ''Teoria generală a vieții sociale omenești'' ("The General Theory of Human Social Life"), a manuscript comprising 1,276 pages, read by Stahl as a final synthesis "of his work in the realm of sociology". Its mission statement described a merger of Gustian and Marxist ideas, around the "objective laws of social development". Also in 1980, Herseni's essay on the "Romanian race" saw print as ''Cultura psihologică românească'' ("Romanian Psychological Culture"); ''Teoria generală'' was also eventually published in 1982. Herseni was more fully recovered and discussed after the
Romanian Revolution of 1989 The Romanian revolution () was a period of violent civil unrest in Romania during December 1989 as a part of the revolutions of 1989 that occurred in several countries around the world, primarily within the Eastern Bloc. The Romanian revoluti ...
, which lifted the ban placed by communism over most of his work. Herseni's work in Transnistria was only revisited in 1994, when C. A. Ionescu's book was printed, in its complete form, in
Chișinău Chișinău ( , , ; formerly known as Kishinev) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Moldova, largest city of Moldova. The city is Moldova's main industrial and commercial centre, and is located in the middle of the coun ...
,
Moldova Moldova, officially the Republic of Moldova, is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe, with an area of and population of 2.42 million. Moldova is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. ...
. However, as noted in 2003 by scholar Ionel Necula, he was still not properly appreciated by the intellectual community. As Necula assessed in retrospect, Herseni's work under communism was no more embarrassing than similar contributions by Noica,
Lucian Blaga Lucian Blaga (; 9 May 1895 – 6 May 1961) was a Romanians, Romanian philosopher, poet, playwright, poetry translator and novelist. He is considered one of the greatest philosophers and poets of Romania, and a prominent philosopher of the twenti ...
, or
Petru Comarnescu __NOTOC__ Petru Comarnescu (23 November 1905 – 27 November 1970) was a Romanian literary and art critic and translator. Born in Iași into a family that was related to the metropolitan bishop , he studied law at the University of Bucharest (degr ...
—"what
hey Hey, HEY, or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the ...
wrote under communism is what they would have written under any other regime." More controversially, Herseni's work was also reclaimed by
neo-fascist Neo-fascism is a post-World War II far-right ideology which includes significant elements of fascism. Neo-fascism usually includes ultranationalism, ultraconservatism, racial supremacy, right-wing populism, authoritarianism, nativism, xe ...
publications which appeared throughout the 1990s. Anthropologist Zoltán Rostás had by then contacted various of his colleagues, including Paula Gusty-Herseni, publishing his interviews with them in various volumes, including the 2003 ''Sala luminoasă'' ("A Lit Room"). She died aged 98. The Hersenis had one daughter, Ioana, a psychologist at the Oil & Gas University. In 2007, she and Marian Diaconu issued his sociological overview, ''Istoria sociologiei românești'' ("History of Romanian Sociology").Bulgaru, p. 79; Stan, pp. 27, 36, 37 Marking Herseni's centenary that same year, the Chișinău Academy of Economic Studies hosted a symposium in his honor.


Notes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herseni, Traian 1907 births 1980 deaths 20th-century Romanian anthropologists 20th-century Romanian historians 20th-century Romanian philosophers 20th-century psychologists Romanian historians of philosophy Deist philosophers Romanian deists Christian existentialists Heidegger scholars Kantian philosophers Marxist theorists Determinists Romanian sociologists Sociologists of science Economic sociologists Rural sociologists Family sociologists Medical sociologists Romanian psychologists Social psychologists Quantitative psychologists Cultural anthropologists Social anthropologists Biopolitics Romanian eugenicists Hygienists Proponents of scientific racism Geopoliticians Fascist writers Romanian genealogists Oral historians Historians of science Romanian Marxist historians Romanian ethnologists Romanian ethnographers Romanian folklorists Culture of Transylvania Historiography of Dacia 20th-century Romanian essayists Romanian opinion journalists Romanian columnists Romanian magazine editors Academic journal editors Romanian science writers Romanian textbook writers Romanian writers in French Ghostwriters Academic staff of the University of Bucharest Humboldt University of Berlin alumni Academic staff of Babeș-Bolyai University Academic staff of Odesa University Romanian schoolteachers Romanian civil servants Members of the Iron Guard National Renaissance Front politicians People from Brașov County Romanian Austro-Hungarians Romanian Roman Catholics Radu Negru National College alumni University of Bucharest alumni Romanian people of World War II The Holocaust in Transnistria Romanian collaborators with Nazi Germany Romanian prisoners and detainees People detained by the Securitate Inmates of Aiud prison Inmates of Jilava Prison Censorship in Romania Romanian communists Romanian propagandists Socialist Republic of Romania rehabilitations Burials at Bellu Cemetery