Papers by Nicolescu Valentin Quintus
In this paper I am trying to explore the possible relationship between the worldwide grass-roots ... more In this paper I am trying to explore the possible relationship between the worldwide grass-roots Occupy movement and the 2012 Piaţa Universităţii marathon manifestation in Romania. My approach is a comparative one – I firstly try to sketch a conceptual framework designed to produce a clear image regarding the global Occupy movement, and secondly to see if the Romanian phenomenon is related to the wider Occupy movement. Finally, I will try to formulate some conclusions regarding the implications for political theory of both types of social movements, the most important one regarding the relation between a non-hierarchical, leaderless movement and contemporary evolutions in political ideologies.
European Journal of East Asian Studies
Environment and History, 2014
In this article I explore the role played by nature in the construction of the discourse of Roman... more In this article I explore the role played by nature in the construction of the discourse of Romanian national identity. What was the perceived relation between the human community and the natural realm? How was the natural landscape transformed into a constitutive part of the national discourse? Could nature be seen as an essential identity marker for Romanian nationhood, thus shaping a form of Romanian exceptionalism? What form does this exceptionalist view take in the Romanian case? I highlight how the concept of an imagined national community was developed by the Romanian political and intellectual elite of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and the role played by nature in the shaping of this discourse of identity.
România Occidentală, 2023
This article discusses the main provisions of the Black Sea Security Act
of 2023 (BSSA), as well ... more This article discusses the main provisions of the Black Sea Security Act
of 2023 (BSSA), as well as how the document specifically addresses the complex issues raised by the Black Sea region. It is constructed around the following question: to what extent does the BSSA succeed in identifying and responding to the security challenges in the Black Sea region? In order to achieve this, the author first outlines a map of the
problems, actors, and interests in the area. Then, in a second step, the author analyses the BSSA, observing how it proposes to address the crises in the region and the problems identified with the mapping exercise above. The conclusions allow then for identifying the strenghts and weaknesses of the BSSA within the context of the challenges in the Black
Sea region, in connection with particularities of the US foreign policy making
Civil Szemle, 2023
The article is an investigation into the historical process of nation building in Russia and its ... more The article is an investigation into the historical process of nation building in Russia and its impact on shaping state ideology during the Putin era. To this respect, I am planning to argue for a reassessment of current understandings of Russia’s political regime and ideology, by abandoning the simplistic view of an authoritarian regime dominated by a strong man figure using a simulacrum of ideology to legitimate his position and political decisions, and to place Putinism into perspective, as an organic development of a mainly pre-Soviet era Russian ideological and collective identity discourse.
The first half of the year 2018 brought about a new player on the Romanian political scene, Mi?ca... more The first half of the year 2018 brought about a new player on the Romanian political scene, Mi?carea România Împreun? (the Romania Together Movement), initiated by the former technocratic prime-minister Dacian Ciolo?. Built on the foundations of the civic initiative Romania 100, the new political formation proclaims itself to be a moderate party, pro-European, and center-left. In this paper we aim to demonstrate that, despite this self-identification, MRI illustrated a particular political model, initiated in France by the current president, Emmanuel Macron, La Re?publique En Marche. Unlike other authors, who speak about “anti-populist populism” in order to define this particular political formula, we consider that, on the contrary, it should not be considered as a special category in the taxonomies regarding the populist phenomenon, but as a formula by which the demo-liberal political order understands to adapt itself to the challenge of the populist phenomenon. Consequentially, th...
Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2014
The "factory" logic and the focus on career-driven, market oriented neoliberal policies in higher... more The "factory" logic and the focus on career-driven, market oriented neoliberal policies in higher education have dramatically shifted the focus of education and research, as well as altering the fundamental values and tenets of traditional academic life. In our paper we will try to explore the impact of neoliberal reforms in higher education in a post-communist country-Romania. Therefore, we are trying to answer a number of research questions: what are the main characteristics of neoliberal ideology? How are they reflected in policy decisions throughout the world, particularly in the higher education area? In this context, what is the impact of neoliberal policies and practices for the Romanian higher education system?
Challenges of the Knowledge Society, 2011
My paper focuses on the intersection between the Roma cultural-identitary construction and the po... more My paper focuses on the intersection between the Roma cultural-identitary construction and the political concept of citizenship, trying to reveal if such an approach can prove itself helpful in providing a better understanding of the unilaterality of the majority-Roma relationship. By unilaterality I understand the particular model in which the Roma-Romanian relationship has structured itself overtime. It mainly consists of a segregationist view that stresses the majority's responsibility with the minority's integration process and the failures to promote a partnership with the minority. This approach tends, in my opinion, to treat the minority in absentia, producing therefore the well-known effects of the so-called "Roma problem". On the other hand, the idea of empowering the Roma minority is also seen as being fundamentally within the majority's attributions, therefore contradicting the very essence of the concept. My approach seeks to apply a theoretical framework developed first by Gramsci and later by Boudieu to this particular situation. Thus I hope to be able to provide a better understanding of both the history and the present of majority-minority relations and to highlight possible directions or outcomes relating to the dichotomy of integration/communitarian privacy in the case of the Roma minority.
OUT OF STEP Politics and Subcultures in the Post-Socialist Space Edited by Jan Charvát and Anna Oravcová, 2021
In our chapter we are trying to investigate a particularly under-researched topic, the Romanian p... more In our chapter we are trying to investigate a particularly under-researched topic, the Romanian popular musical genre manele (sg. manea) and its connections with a specific social reality—that of the marginalized and underprivileged—as well as with the relatively new political appropriation process of the manele initiated by a group of left-wing radical human rights activists, apparently in order to critically emphasize the xenophobic attitudes present in Romanian society towards the Roma minority, of which most manele performers originate. In this context, the subculture associated with manele music is still uncharted territory, with very few researchers showing any interest towards the phenomenon. To this day, the most relevant research on the subject remains that of Stoichiţă and La Bretèque (2012), Haliliuc (2014), and a forthcoming edited volume on the issue done by Beissinger, Rădulescu and Giurchescu.
Ideologii politice actuale - M. Miroiu (Coord), 2012
Ideologii politice actuale - M. Miroiu (Coord), 2012
În primul rând trebuie făcută o distincţie clară între doi termeni ce nu o dată sunt folosiţi sin... more În primul rând trebuie făcută o distincţie clară între doi termeni ce nu o dată sunt folosiţi sinonimic în mod eronat: socialismul şi comunismul. Socialismul are două surse, una în Anglia Mişcării Cartiste şi alta în Franţa lui Saint-Simon. În Anglia, termenul apare pasager în publicaţia adepţilor lui Robert Owen, The Cooperative magazine, în 1827, însă se va împământeni odată cu utilizarea sa în ziarul Le Globe (în 1832) de către Pierre Leroux, jurnalist francez asociat mişcării saint-simoniste. Etimologic pot fi identificate două origini ale termenului, ambele din limba latină: socialis, însemnând "a fi făcut pentru societate" (Parenteau&Parenteau, 2008, p. 88), sau, conform altor autori, sociare, ce înseamnă "a combina sau a împărţi cu alţii" (Vincent, 2010, p. 83). Termenul de comunism apare ceva mai devreme, asociat cu numele lui Gracchus Babeuf, în timpul Revoluţiei Franceze de la 1789, din punct de vedere etimologic originându-se în latinul communis, ce înseamnă "ceea ce este în comun". Cum vom vedea şi mai jos, cele două familii, deşi iniţial pornesc la drum împreună, se scindează în mod clar la sfârşitul secolului XIX, ruptura definitivă fiind consfinţită în 1919 de apariţia Internaţionalei a III-a comuniste. Elementul central ce separă cele două ramuri ideologice înrudite-socialismul şi comunismul-este reprezentat de strategia prin care au în vedere realizarea programului de acţiune politică implicat de viziunea lor comună asupra lumii: socialiştii sunt adepţii căii reformiste, în timp ce comuniştii sunt revoluţionari (Parenteau&Parenteau, 2008, p. 84). Trebuie totuşi menţionat aici faptul că, din perspectiva ideologică a comuniştilor, socialismul este doar o etapă istorică, şi nu o mişcare politică în sine, această poziţie specifică datorându-se dorinţei exprese de a menţine unitatea şi coerenţa ideologică a stângii aşa cum o înţeleg ei. Reformiştii apar din această perspectivă ca o formulă contaminată de elemente ideologice liberal-burgheze care face-conştient sau nu-jocul clasei dominante, în timp ce comuniştii revoluţionari apar ca singurii păstrători ai purităţii doctrinare originate în scrierile fondatorilor (Vincent, 2010, p. 85).
More than 20 years after the 1989 Revolution, the Romanian society continues to be patriarchal – ... more More than 20 years after the 1989 Revolution, the Romanian society continues to be patriarchal – and implicitly less democratic for women. This fact becomes more obvious if one looks towards the political sphere and at the way in which women’s interests are represented at the political decision level. In this social environment, civil society and especially the feminist movement have a particularly important role in terms of promoting women’s specific civic and political agendas. Our paper is an exploratory investigation of the strategies of political and civic actions used by the feminist movement in Romania during the postcommunist period. We will try to identify and categorize these strategies. Our aim is to explore a way of formulating a sort of typology (a methodological exploration) of the civil and political models of action used by five Romanian feminist NGOs, while trying to assess their activity. This study is one of a prospective nature, in other words, it is not an exhau...
In my article I will try to examine some methodological assumptions proposed by Anthony D. Smith ... more In my article I will try to examine some methodological assumptions proposed by Anthony D. Smith regarding the study of nations and nationalisms and discuss the relation between the ethnie and nation in his work in order to asses the implications they have on the wider theoretical model proposed by ethno-symbolism.
My paper focuses on the intersection between the Roma cultural-identitary construction and the po... more My paper focuses on the intersection between the Roma cultural-identitary construction and the political concept of citizenship, trying to reveal if such an approach can prove itself helpful in providing a better understanding of the unilaterality of the majority-Roma relationship. By unilaterality I understand the particular model in which the Roma-Romanian relationship has structured itself overtime. It mainly consists of a segregationist view that stresses the majority's responsibility with the minority's integration process and the failures to promote a partnership with the minority. This approach tends, in my opinion, to treat the minority in absentia, producing therefore the well-known effects of the so-called " Roma problem ". On the other hand, the idea of empowering the Roma minority is also seen as being fundamentally within the majority's attributions, therefore contradicting the very essence of the concept. My approach seeks to apply a theoretical framework developed first by Gramsci and later by Boudieu to this particular situation. Thus I hope to be able to provide a better understanding of both the history and the present of majority-minority relations and to highlight possible directions or outcomes relating to the dichotomy of integration/communitarian privacy in the case of the Roma minority. Motto: " Large scale immigration, within a society so well fettled as ours, can only be positively perceived provided that the immigrants have a solid background and that their religion and race do not prevent them from marrying and mixing with members of the host-population " The Royal Commision on Population, 1949 1
The “factory” logic and the focus on career-driven, market oriented neoliberal policies in higher... more The “factory” logic and the focus on career-driven, market oriented neoliberal policies in higher education have dramatically shifted the focus of education and research, as well as altering the fundamental values and tenets of traditional academic life. In our paper we will try to explore the impact of neoliberal reforms in higher education in a post-communist country – Romania. Therefore, we are trying to answer a number of research questions: what are the main characteristics of neoliberal ideology? How are they reflected in policy decisions throughout the world, particularly in the higher education area? In this context, what is the impact of neoliberal policies and practices for the Romanian higher education system?
Environment and History, Feb 1, 2014
In this article I explore the role played by nature in the construction of the discourse of Roman... more In this article I explore the role played by nature in the construction of the discourse of Romanian national identity. What was the perceived relation between the human community and the natural realm? How was the natural landscape transformed into a constitutive part of the national discourse? Could nature be seen as an essential identity marker for Romanian nationhood, thus shaping a form of Romanian exceptionalism? What form does this exceptionalist view take in the Romanian case? I highlight how the concept of an imagined national community was developed by the Romanian political and intellectual elite of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and the role played by nature in the shaping of this discourse of identity.
European Journal of Science and Theology, Dec 2012
In this paper I am trying to explore the possible relationship between the worldwide grass-roots ... more In this paper I am trying to explore the possible relationship between the worldwide grass-roots Occupy movement and the 2012 Piaţa Universităţii marathon manifestation in Romania. My approach is a comparative one – I firstly try to sketch a conceptual framework designed to produce a clear image regarding the global Occupy movement, and secondly to see if the Romanian phenomenon is related to the wider Occupy movement. Finally, I will try to formulate some conclusions regarding the implications for political theory of both types of social movements, the most important one regarding the relation between a non-hierarchical, leaderless movement and contemporary evolutions in political ideologies.
Patriarhat şi emancipare în istoria gândirii politice româneşti - Maria Bucur, Mihaela Miroiu (editoare)
Editarea acestui volum a fost finanfati din grantul CNCSIS, nr. 64-Dezvoltarea Masteratului de St... more Editarea acestui volum a fost finanfati din grantul CNCSIS, nr. 64-Dezvoltarea Masteratului de Studii de Gen, SNSPA, Bucuregti, proiect coordonat de prof. univ. dr. Mihaela Miroiu.
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Papers by Nicolescu Valentin Quintus
of 2023 (BSSA), as well as how the document specifically addresses the complex issues raised by the Black Sea region. It is constructed around the following question: to what extent does the BSSA succeed in identifying and responding to the security challenges in the Black Sea region? In order to achieve this, the author first outlines a map of the
problems, actors, and interests in the area. Then, in a second step, the author analyses the BSSA, observing how it proposes to address the crises in the region and the problems identified with the mapping exercise above. The conclusions allow then for identifying the strenghts and weaknesses of the BSSA within the context of the challenges in the Black
Sea region, in connection with particularities of the US foreign policy making
of 2023 (BSSA), as well as how the document specifically addresses the complex issues raised by the Black Sea region. It is constructed around the following question: to what extent does the BSSA succeed in identifying and responding to the security challenges in the Black Sea region? In order to achieve this, the author first outlines a map of the
problems, actors, and interests in the area. Then, in a second step, the author analyses the BSSA, observing how it proposes to address the crises in the region and the problems identified with the mapping exercise above. The conclusions allow then for identifying the strenghts and weaknesses of the BSSA within the context of the challenges in the Black
Sea region, in connection with particularities of the US foreign policy making