Literatura Pentru Copii În România După Comunism: Între Critica Estetică Și Critica Ideologică

This article examines Romanian children’s literature after 1989 from a dual perspective: aesthetic and ideological. Starting from the observation that children’s literature has long been treated either as a minor literary field or as a primarily educational instrument, the study argues for an integrative critical approach capable of acknowledging both literary value and socio-cultural relevance. The article first outlines the post-1989 institutional context of Romanian children’s literature, marked by discontinuities, editorial reconstruction, translation flows and new mechanisms of legitimation. It then discusses the tension between aesthetic and ideological criticism in postcommunist Romanian literary discourse. Finally, through five case studies, the article demonstrates that ideology does not function as an external message added to literary form, but is mediated precisely through genre, voice, rhythm, intertextuality, narrative structure and theatricality. The central claim is that Romanian children’s literature after communism must be critically reevaluated as an autonomous and relevant part of contemporary literature, capable of participating both in the national canon and in broader comparative discussions.