Ionel Gherea | |
|---|---|
 Gherea c. 1978 | |
| Born | 1895 |
| Died | December 15, 1978 (aged 83) |
| Alma mater | University of Bucharest |
| Era | 20th-century philosophy |
| Region | Western philosophy |
| School | Idealism Rationalism Consequentialism Criterion |
Main interests | Phenomenology, philosophy of self, ontology, aesthetics |
Ionel Gherea, also known as Ioan Dobrogeanu-Gherea or Ion D. Gherea (Francized J. D. Ghéréa; 1895 – December 15, 1978), was a Romanian philosopher, essayist, and concert pianist. The son of Constantin Dobrogeanu-Gherea, a Marxist theoretician and critic, and the brother of communist militant Alexandru "Sașa" Gherea, he was only mildly interested in politics of any kind, embracing an apolitical form of left-libertarianism. Largely self-taught, he became interested in the aestheticism of his brother-in-law, Paul Zarifopol, who became one of his main references. As a youth, Zarifopol took him to meet playwright Ion Luca Caragiale and his family, who were also influential on Gherea's writing, and the focus of his old-age memoirs. Gherea's debut as a writer was a 1920 novel written jointly with Luca Caragiale, which was also his only contribution to the genre. Following Constantin's death and Sașa's imprisonment, he had to handle family affairs, but his mismanagement of their money led him into remorseful despair; in 1924, he briefly disappeared, and was presumed to have committed suicide.
Enjoying national success as an accompanist for George Enescu and répétiteur for the Bucharest Conservatory, Gherea also became a respected literary essayist, well-liked for his impressionistic approach and his direct expression. He was also a noted Romanian phenomenologist, ontologist, and philosopher of art; his main work was condensed and published in France as Le Moi el le monde (1933), which was only translated into Romanian some six years after his death. Gherea's lasting friendship with philosopher Constantin Noica transcended ethnic and ideological barriers, also bringing him into contact with the far-right thinker Nae Ionescu. As a committed anti-authoritarian, Gherea was repressed by during the first decade of Romanian communism, being identified as "decadent" by the regime's official philosopher, Constantin Ionescu Gulian. He reemerged in the 1960s as a memoirist and Nietzsche translator, and was sought after to provide details on his father's family life. Selections from Gherea's essays appeared in quick succession, but, having lived a discreet life, he was still largely ignored by the public at the time of his death.