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The Paltinis Diary: A Paideic Model in Humanist Culture (Central European Library of Ideas)
The Paltinis Diary A Paideic Model in Humanist Culture - Central European Library of Ideas Author:Gabriel Liiceanu The intellectual resistance to totalitarian regimes can take many forms. This remarkable volume portrays one such story of resistance in Romania during the reign of Ceausescu: that of Constantin Noica, one of the country's foremost intellectuals. Noica was an original thinker belonging to the remarkable intellectual generation of important figu... more »res such as Mircea Eliade, E.M. Ciorin and Eugene Ionescu, but he chose to stay in Romania after the communist takeover when many others fled. Harassed and jailed for six years, Noica retreated to the mountains and gathered around him some brilliant young minds and future talent to challenge and nurture them in a time when communism denied them the materials of true intellectual importance. This group of students withdrew to Noica's retreat for intensive philosophical sessions to debate the works of Kant, Plato, Heidegger and discuss humanistic values. The author of this volume Liiceanu, himself a brilliant philosopher, was Noica's closest disciple and during every meeting he noted every conversation in a diary which came to be known as The Paltinis Diary. These conversations were secretly published and quickly devoured by intellectuals in Romania who were prepared to sacrifice part of their food provisions to acquire the book. The Paltinis Diary sold out within a matter of days and because of Secret Police censorship and was not published again in Romania until 1991 by which time Noica had died and the group had disbanded to help with the reconstruction of post-Ceausescu Romania. The Paltinis Diary is a wonderful homage to an intellectual master and to the power of intellect and freedom. The book will be of interest to philosophers, non-philosophers alike, and to anyone who seeks to grasp the true meaning of survival under totalitarian conditions. Part of the new series Central European Library of Ideas a series of books that will shape and fuel current Central European debates. The series editor, Sorin Antohi, and an international advisory board will select the most innovative and challenging titles that set the intellectual agendas of whole societies, or which take issue with central concerns in the region. The series will be of interest to anyone concerned with the current ideologies shaping the future of Central and Eastern Europe.« less