Cosmin Perţa: A guide through contrasts

– Romania

Cosmin Perţa was born in 1982 in Vişeu de Sus in the region of Maramureș. He studied philology in Cluj and received his PhD in Bucharest for his thesis titled Fantasticism in Eastern European Literature. He is the director of the Tracus Arte publishing house. He debuted as a poet with his collection titled Zorovavel published when he was twenty years old and he later wrote another four poetry collections. He also penned two short story collections and three novels, including the humorous fantasy story Întâmplări la marginea lumii (Episodes from the Edge of the World) and the highly regarded novel Teofil şi câinele de lemn (Teofil and the Wooden Dog). He also writes essays, literary critiques and theatrical plays. In his texts he often voices his concerns about the contemporary world and uses contrasts for emphasis: juxtaposing highs with lows, tenderness with vehemence, or Baroque ornateness with the directness of electronic messaging. “Absurdity is overwhelming, swallowing and crushing us / Normality is an empty word / We’re lost. All is uncertain. // We’re sophisticated, ironic, condescending / We’re too post-everything for anything ethical, for life itself.”