The Electric Mirror. Memory, Self-Fiction, Postures and Poses. The Distance between Me and Me (2018

Abstract

Based on previous research on women’s life-writing, including Nina Cassian’s multilayered (constructed and deconstructed) diary, the current paper focuses on the complex manner in which literary postures are performed and discussed by the protagonist herself in the 2018 documentary directed by Dana Bunescu and Mona Nicoara. The Distance between Me and Me reinforces, with cinematic tools, the literary postures of the Engaged Writer in Cold War Romania, among many other postures (from children’s literature writer and storyteller to the author reflecting on the contemporary writers’ reception or the female condition in literature). The theatrical performance takes place at a double level: the postures on the screen and the reactions and dialogue of the aged protagonist with her persona on the screen. The paper discusses the manner in which diverse scenographies and numerous postures are re-enacted in this genuine formula, reflecting its relevance for Romanian Cold War writer figure.