Izabela Sadoveanu-Evan

Who is Izabela Sadoveanu-Evan?

Izabela Sadoveanu-Evan was a Romanian literary critic, educationist, opinion journalist, poet and feminist militant. She spent her youth advocating socialism, and rallied with left-wing politics for the remainder of her life, primarily as a representative of Poporanist circles and personal friend of culture critic Garabet Ibrăileanu. Under Ibrăileanu's guidance, Sadoveanu wrote for Viaţa Românească review, where she tried to reconcile ethnic nationalism and traditionalism with aestheticism. As literary critic, she championed the recognition of Symbolism as an independent cultural phenomenon, and reviewed modern developments in English literature.

Sadoveanu represented Romanian feminism at International Alliance of Women congresses, but took a gradualist approach to women's suffrage, and, during the interwar, became interested in creating links between feminism and eugenics. With her activities as schoolteacher and militant, she supported education reform, and qualified to propagate the Montessori method. Late in life, she added feminist anti-fascism to her list of political and social involvements.