Caton Theodorian, or Teodorian (May 14, 1871 – January 8, 1939), was a Romanian playwright, poet, short story writer and novelist. He was a maternal nephew of the politician Eugeniu Carada through his Oltenian father, a scion of the boyar nobility. His noble origins informed his chief works in both naturalistic fiction and drama, which mainly deal with social decline and boyar obsessions with heredity. Although showcased by the National Theatre Bucharest, Theodorian's plays were dismissed by critics as vulgar or wordy, and were sometimes rejected by the public. His most treasured contribution was a 1915 comedy, Bujoreștii ("The Bujorescus"), which synthesizes his recurrent themes. A moderate in ideological terms, the writer never openly affiliated with either the Romanian Symbolists or their Sămănătorul rivals, but frequented and was published by both. During the final twenty years of his life, he was attached to the Sburătorul circle.
In addition to writing, of which he did relatively little, Theodorian worked as an actor and prompter, a newspaper editor, and finally as a clerk. He had jobs with various state regulatory bodies, and several times with the Romanian Police, briefly serving as commissioner in Vâlcea County. He then had a prominent position in the Romanian Writers' Society, but resigned due to political disagreements during the early stages of World War I. Like his brother Mariu Theodorian-Carada, Caton disliked the Entente Powers, and opposed Romania's entry into the war. He spent the war years fleeing occupation and bombardments, moving from Valea Mare to Iași, then to Paris, Lausanne, and Bern. He returned to a prominent job in the Romanian Arts Ministry, and, in his final year, took an executive position in the new General Directorate of the Press and Propaganda; he was also the founder, and for long president, of the Society of Romanian Dramatic Authors.
Biography
Origins and early life Born in Craiova,Gheorghe Perian, "Theodorian Caton", in Aurel Sasu (ed.), Dicționarul biografic al literaturii române, Vol. II, p. 707. Pitești: Editura Paralela 45, 2004. Călinescu, p. 720; Iorga, p. 183 his parents were Ion Theodorian and his wife Emma (née Carada). As noted by Mariu Theodorian, his father was often mistaken for Armenian, due to his general appearance and Armenian-sounding surname. The surname was of recent origin, having been chosen by Ion, who claimed it was the original name of his father, Praporshchik Constantin Theodor.Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 18–19 The latter, possibly an Aromanian immigrant to Wallachia, had fought with the 1821 revolutionaries and then the Wallachian regulars, before becoming a customs officer and gentleman farmer.Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 19, 21. See also Călinescu, p. 720 Through his grandmother, Uța Scărișoreanu, Theodorian descended from the lower ranks of Oltenian boyardom, but his family estates had been sold off to pay outstanding debts.Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 19–20. See also Călinescu, p. 720
Ion, an avid reader of literature and political science, had failed as a businessman and an actor, entering the civil service of Wallachia and then that of the United Principalities (modern Romania). He was head of the police of Craiova, and then the deputy prefect of Fălciu County, where, in 1867, he quelled a tax riot of the local Jews.Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 21–24 It was in Fălciu that he met his future brother-in-law, Eugeniu Carada,Theodorian-Carada I, p. 22 later famous as a co-leader of the National Liberal Party. The Caradas were an ethnic Greek clan of publicans and butchers, settled in Bucharest, catering to, then marrying into, Wallachian nobility.Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 26–33 In 1870, having returned to Oltenia, Theodorian Sr organized the city's riotous opposition to Domnitor Carol of Hohenzollern (in conjunction with the failed "Republic of Ploiești"), and then, helped by Carada, advanced through the party ranks.Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 22–23, 36–47 He had two other sons in addition to Mariu (the eldest) and Caton: Ștefan and Ion "Nonu" Theodorian.Moldovan, p. 64; Theodorian-Carada II, pp. 58, 64, 98, 120, 124
The Theodorian brothers were orphaned in 1879, when Ion died of chickenpox contracted on a political tour—as recounted in Caton's memoir, Prima durere ("The First Pain").Caton Theodorian, "Prima durere", in Familia, Nr. 30/1907, pp. 347–348 Mariu was adopted by his uncle Eugeniu and his aunt Sultana,Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 23–27 while Caton began his education at the private C. Dima Popovici Institute in his native city, where his mother was the principal. He then attended Craiova's D. A. Sturdza College (1881–1885), and, according to his own testimony, was briefly colleagues with writer Traian Demetrescu.Șerban Cioculescu, "Traian Demetrescu", in Șerban Cioculescu, Ovidiu Papadima, Alexandru Piru (eds.), Istoria literaturii române. III: Epoca marilor clasici, p. 815. Bucharest: Editura Academiei, 1973 From 1885 to 1887, he attended military high school. His uncle wished for him to become an officer, but Caton ran away from school, allegedly spending some time studying in Paris,Călinescu, p. 720 then working for Teodor Popescu's theatrical troupe as a prompter, copyist and extra. He secured his first government post in 1888, possibly through Carada's contacts.
Theodorian headed ephemeral provincial publications such as Lumina ("The Light", 1890), which hosted his literary debut, and was for a while both editor and writer at Adevărul and Naționalul, often signing as Alexandru Răzvan, Olymp, and Zaveră.Straje, pp. 502, 595, 721, 805 For a while, he frequented Alexandru Macedonski's Literatorul circle in Bucharest, putting out poetry and prose fragments in the eponymous magazine.Călinescu, p. 719; Iorga, p. 13 His first book was the 1891 collection of sketches and short stories Petale ("Petals"), with a preface by Macedonski; around the same time, he debuted as a dramatist in Craiova, with Manopere electorale ("Electoral Maneuvers") and Patima ("The Passion").Călinescu, p. 719 Although he remained affiliated with magazines that promoted Romanian Symbolism (Literatorul, Flacăra), he was also published in more traditionalist reviews—such as Luceafărul, Sămănătorul, and Ramuri.Straje, p. 721 As noted by literary historians, he always remained "without precise affiliations",Ovid Crohmălniceanu, Literatura română între cele două războaie mondiale, Vol. I, p. 24. Bucharest: Editura Minerva, 1972. an "eclectic" and "moderate".Călinescu, p. 713
Police chief and SSR organizer
In parallel to his writing, Theodorian advanced through with his bureau jobs, working as second inspector for State Monopolies in 1896, and being assigned a clerical position at Bucharest Police Headquarters in 1897. In April 1898, while commanding the police unit in Gara de Nord, he apprehended a ring of mail thieves who had thrived on transited Western merchandise."Descoperirea unuĭ furt însemnat", in Epoca, April 8, 1898, p. 2 Later that year, he became head of police in Râmnicu Vâlcea, mediating between his politically ambitious brother and the Vâlcea County prefect (1900).Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 143–144 He married Ana Iancovescu in 1899, and had two daughters from her—Emma and Alice.Călinescu, p. 721 From 1901 to 1903, he was a deputy prefect in Northern Dobruja, moving between Babadag, Sulina, Cataloi and Măcin. He was again in Vâlcea as a village inspector on the Lotru (1904), putting out the magazine Râmnicul (1906). Following the peasants' revolt of March 1907 and the cession of power to a National Liberal cabinet, he became for a while director of the Vâlcea prefecture.Theodorian-Carada I, p. 165. See also Călinescu, p. 721 During this interval, he played host to an informal gathering of writers, including Victor Eftimiu, Octavian Goga, and Ilarie Chendi. According to Eftimiu, it was here that Chendi showed the first signs of a debilitating mental disease.Eftimiu, pp. 114–116
Theodorian returned to short-story writing with Prima durere, followed by Calea sufletului ("The Way of the Soul", 1909), then La masa calicului ("At the Cadger's Table", 1911), also debuting as a novelist with the 1908 Sângele Solovenilor ("Blood of the Soloveni").Călinescu, pp. 709, 1018; Lovinescu, pp. 211–212 His work took him to Buzău County, where he was a field inspector for agriculture (1908–1911), but he also returned to Bucharest where, in 1910, with Mariu and Ion I. C. Brătianu, he visited his uncle Eugeniu at his deathbed.Theodorian-Carada I, pp. 178–179 He was by then involved with the Romanian Writers' Society (SSR), having joined its embryonic predecessor in 1908–1909, and becoming an executive committee member of the reorganized forum in November 1911,Victor Ion Popa, "Societatea Scriitorilor Români", in Boabe de Grâu, Nr. 10/1935, pp. 611–612, 616 reelected in 1912 and 1914. Cassian Maria Spiridon, "Secolul breslei scriitoricești", in Convorbiri Literare, April 2008
He was at that time a frequent guest of Casa Capșa restaurant, known to others as "the man with glass in his eye", for his habit of wearing monocles.Peltz, pp. 141, 148 As noted by literary historian George Călinescu, while lacking "a particular career", Theodorian maintained a "sumptuous" lifestyle; also: "beyond [his] outbursts of violence and a domineering nature, he was a sentimental character." The same is also argued by the dramatist Mircea Ștefănescu: "Caton Theodorian appeared to be aggressive to all those who did not know him well." This, however, was just a front, which allowed Theodorian to "defend his profession with staunchness and dignity."Mircea Ștefănescu, "Caton Theodorian", in Teatrul, Nr. 6/1971 Visiting the Kingdom of Italy and the German Empire in 1912, Theodorian sent numerous postcards to the hospitalized Chendi. When Chendi committed suicide, he proposed erecting a bust in his likeness.Netea, p. 108
With other Society members, among them Goga, Emil Gârleanu, and Cincinat Pavelescu, he traveled into Austria-Hungary, attending literary parties for the Romanian community of Transylvania.Codru, "Cronică. Serbările literare din Sibiiu. — Impresii. — (1)", in Luceafărul, Nr. 7/1911, p. 165; Netea, pp. 78, 108; Alex. Ștefănescu, "Un album care e mai mult decât un album", in România Literară, Nr. 33/2008 Between 1910 and 1926, Theodorian was also a member in the reading committee at the National Theatre Bucharest.Massoff, p. 275 Although he reported in 1911 that he was working on a new novel, Față'n față ("Face to Face"),"Cronică. Notițe", in Luceafărul, Nr. 7/1911, p. 168 it never came out. As noted in 1974 by Capșa colleague I. Peltz, he "wrote little, but bragged about it to no end."Peltz, p. 148 He eventually returned with a tragedy, Ziua cea din urmă ("That Last Day"), hosted by Noua Revistă Română in 1912,Călinescu, pp. 709, 1018; Lovinescu, p. 316 and staged at Bucharest's Modern Theater by Marioara Voiculescu's company in 1913. In early 1914, following a dispute with the dramatist Dimitrie Anghel, the latter challenged him to a duel. When Theodorian refused to fight, Anghel published a letter calling him various names, including an "intriguer" and "ridiculous Oltenian knight"."Incidentul D. Anghel – Caton Teodorian", in Adevărul, February 16, 1914, p. 2