VASILE COROBAN AND THE AFFIRMATION OF THE CRITICAL SPIRIT IN AN IDEOLOGICAL CONTEXT
Article:
Download
About author:
Dorina ROTARI 
Doctor of Philology,
Senior Research Scientist
The “Bogdan Petriceicu-Hasdeu” Institute of Philology at the State University of Moldova
E-mail:dorina.rotari@usm.md
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52505/llf.2026.1.02
Abstract:
This article represents an attempt to reassess and re-evaluate the activity of the literary critic and historian Vasile Coroban, a representative figure situated at the intersection of interwar Romanian culture and the ideological context of Soviet Bessarabia. The study aims to outline the profile of an erudite critic who, under historically restrictive conditions, promoted an exegetical approach grounded in theoretical rigor, aesthetic discernment, and cultural openness. The paper examines the main directions of his activity: the valorization of Romanian literary tradition, the reception of world literature, theoretical and literary research, and the consolidation of critical discourse in the Bessarabian cultural space. At the same time, the article proposes a critical reassessment of Vasile Coroban’s work through a nuanced approach that examines both the merits and the limitations shaped by the ideological context, with the aim of achieving a more adequate understanding of his role in the development of literary criticism in the Republic of Moldova.
Keywords: Vasile Coroban, Bessarabian literature, critical spirit, ideology, aesthetic approach, cultural openness.