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Panait Istrati

Born

in Brăila, Romania

August 10, 1884

Died

April 16, 1935

Genre

Literature & Fiction, Nonfiction

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Panait Istrati was a Romanian working-class writer, who wrote in French and Romanian, nicknamed The Maxim Gorky of the Balkans. Istrati was first noted for the depiction of one homosexual character in his work.

Born in Brăila, Istrati was the son of the laundress Joița Istrate and of a Greek smuggler from the village of Faraklata in Kefalonia (whom Panait never met).

His first attempts at writing date from around 1907 when he started sending pieces to the socialist periodicals in Romania, debuting with the article, Hotel Regina in România Muncitoare. Here, he later published his first short stories, Mântuitorul ("The Redeemer"), Calul lui Bălan ("Bălan's Horse"), Familia noastră ("Our Family"), 1 Mai ("May Day"). He also contributed pieces to Panait Istrati was a Romanian working-class writer, who wrote in French and Romanian, nicknamed The Maxim Gorky of the Balkans. Istrati was first noted for the depiction of one homosexual character in his work.

Born in Brăila, Istrati was the son of the laundress Joița Istrate and of a Greek smuggler from the village of Faraklata in Kefalonia (whom Panait never met).

His first attempts at writing date from around 1907 when he started sending pieces to the socialist periodicals in Romania, debuting with the article, Hotel Regina in România Muncitoare. Here, he later published his first short stories, Mântuitorul ("The Redeemer"), Calul lui Bălan ("Bălan's Horse"), Familia noastră ("Our Family"), 1 Mai ("May Day"). He also contributed pieces to other leftist newspapers such as Dimineața, Adevărul, and Viața Socială.

In 1910, he was involved in organizing a strike action in Brăila. He went to Bucharest, Istanbul, Cairo, Naples, Paris (1913–1914), and Switzerland (where he settled for a while, trying to cure his tuberculosis). Istrati's travels were marked by two successive unhappy marriages, a brief return to Romania in 1915 when he tried to earn his living as a hog farmer, and long periods of vagabondage.

While in the sanatorium, Istrati met Russian Jewish-Swiss Zionist writer Josué Jéhouda, who became his friend and French language tutor.

Living in misery, ill, and depressed, he attempted suicide in 1921 on his way to Nice, but his life was rescued in time. Shortly before the attempt, he had written to Romain Rolland, the French writer he admired most and with whom he had long tried to get in touch. Rolland received the letter through the Police and immediately replied. In 1923 Istrati's story Kyra Kyralina (or Chira Chiralina) was published with a preface by Rolland. It became the first in his Adrien Zograffi literary cycle. Rolland was fascinated with Istrati's adventurous life, urging him to write more and publishing parts of his work in Clarté, the magazine that he and Henri Barbusse owned. The next major work by Istrati was the novel Codine.
Istrati and communism

Istrati shared the leftist ideals of Rolland, and, as much as his mentor, placed his hopes in the Bolshevik vision. In 1927 he visited the Soviet Union on the anniversary of the October Revolution, accompanied by Christian Rakovsky during the first stage of the journey (Rakovsky was Soviet ambassador to Paris, and by then already falling out of favor with Joseph Stalin). He travelled through large sections of the European part, witnessing celebrations in Moscow and Kiev. He was joined in Moscow by his future close friend, Nikos Kazantzakis; while in the city, Panait Istrati met Victor Serge and expressed his wish to become a citizen of the Soviet Union. He and Kazantzakis wrote Stalin a congratulatory letter that remained unanswered.

The political opinions Istrati expressed after his split with Bolshevism are rather ambiguous. He was still closely watched by the Romanian secret police (Siguranța Statului), and he had written an article (dated April 8, 1933) in the French magazine Les Nouvelles littéraires, aptly titled L'homme qui n'adhère à rien ("The man who will adhere to nothing").

At the same time, Istrati started publishing in Cruciada Românismului ("The Crusade of Romanianism"), the voice of a left-leaning splinter group of the ultra-nationalist Iron Guard. As such, Istrati became associated with the group's leader Mihai Stelescu, who had been elected as a member of Parliament for the Iron Guard in 1933 and whose dissidence was the reason for his brutal assassination by the Decemviri later in the same year; Istrati was himself assaulted several times by the Guard's squads.

Isolated and unprotected, Panait Istrati died at Filaret Sanatorium in Bucharest. He was buried in Bellu Cemetery. ...more

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Panait Istrati’s books

Average rating: 4.01 · 8,180 ratings · 652 reviews · 202 distinct works • Similar authors

	Chira Chiralina 4.10 avg rating — 2,583 ratings — published 1923 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Ciulinii Bărăganului by Panait Istrati, Alexandru Talex (Translator), Perpessicius (Pref.) 3.92 avg rating — 1,043 ratings — published 1928 — 17 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Arkadaş by Panait Istrati, Yaşar Nabi Nayır (Translator) 3.96 avg rating — 715 ratings — published 1923 — 15 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Akdeniz by Panait Istrati, Yaşar Nabi Nayır (Translator) 3.82 avg rating — 632 ratings — published 1934	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Nerantula 4.08 avg rating — 518 ratings — published 1927 — 21 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Kodin 4.10 avg rating — 481 ratings — published 1926 — 33 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Angel Dayı 3.78 avg rating — 304 ratings — published 1924 — 25 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Sünger Avcısı by Panait Istrati, Yaşar Nabi Nayır (Translator) 3.93 avg rating — 277 ratings — published 1930 — 15 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Hayat Yollarında by Panait Istrati, Yaşar Nabi Nayır (Translator) 3.95 avg rating — 261 ratings — published 1940 — 14 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Els haiducs by Panait Istrati, Anna Casassas (Traductor) 4.10 avg rating — 142 ratings — published 1925	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Panait Istrati…

Series by Panait Istrati

I.Povestirile lui Adrian Zografi (4 books)
by

Panait Istrati

4.11 avg rating — 2,838 ratings

II.Tineretea lui Adrian Zografi (3 books)
by

Panait Istrati,

Yaşar Nabi Nayır (Translator)

4.00 avg rating — 1,473 ratings

III.Viața lui Adrian Zografi (3 books)
by

Panait Istrati,

Yaşar Nabi Nayır (Translator)

3.82 avg rating — 803 ratings

Adrien Zograffi (3 books)
by

Panait Istrati

4.49 avg rating — 90 ratings

Adrien Zograffi (1 book)
by

Panait Istrati

4.67 avg rating — 6 ratings

More series by Panait Istrati…

Quotes by Panait Istrati (?)

“Căci bunătatea unui singur om este cu mult mai puternică decât răutatea miilor de oameni. Răul piere în aceeaşi clipă cu moartea celui care l-a săvârşit, binele continuă să-şi reverse strălucirea şi după dispariţia celui drept.”
― Panait Istrati, Kyra Kyralina

21 likes

“O, frumosul și tristul Liban! Cînd mă gîndesc la anul petrecut acolo, mi se-mbată inima de bucurie, dar și sîngerează în același timp!... Ghazir... Ghazir!... Și tu, Dlepta!... Și tu Harmon!... Și tu, Malmetein!... Și voi, cedrilor cu brațe lungi, brațe de frate, ce parc-ați vrea să-mbrățișați pămîntu-ntreg!... Și voi, rodii, care vă mulțumiți cu trei pumni de mușchi grămădiți într-o crăpătură de stîncă, să îmbiați de-acolo călătorul rătăcitor cu roadele voastre zemoase!... Și tu, Mediterană, care te dai voluptoasă, dezmierdărilor zeului tău înfocat și care-ți așterni nesfîrșirea neprihănită sub ferestrele sărmanelor căsuțe libaneze, așezate una peste alta, cu fața la infinit!... Vă spun rămas bun tuturora!... N-am să vă mai văd, dar ochii mei vor păstra în veci lumina voastră blândă, fără pereche!... În amintirea mea, lumina asta-i terfelită... Viața n-a îngăduit ca bucuria să-mi fie deplină... Dar, Doamne, cînd oare ne dăruie viața o bucurie deplină?”
― Panait Istrati, Chira Chiralina

7 likes

“Se ştie că românul nu e prea negustor; el nu e decât sclavul pământului”
― Panait Istrati, Kyra Kyralina

4 likes

See all Panait Istrati's quotes »

Polls

Nisan 2022 - Modern Klasik Okuması
Nisan ayında aşağıdaki kitaplardan hangisini grupla birlikte okumak istersiniz?

Veba - Albert Camus, 1947, 277 sayfa

18 votes 30.5%

Kira Kiralina - Panaït Istrati, 1924, 132 sayfa

13 votes 22.0%

Orlando - Virginia Woolf, 1928, 257 sayfa

12 votes 20.3%

Doktor Jivago - Boris Pasternak, 1957, 431 sayfa

11 votes 18.6%

Transit - Anna Seghers, 1944, 320 sayfa

5 votes 8.5%

59 total votes

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Panait Istrati’s Followers (192)

Panait Istrati

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