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“The revolution born out of a swear”: populist humour, carnivalization, and mass protest in Romania

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  • Camil Ungureanu

Abstract

This article aims to make two contributions. First, at a theoretical level, I briefly outline an embedded narrative approach to populism, which is critical of treating it solely as an ideology or ontologizing it. This alternative approach provides a better understanding of the connection between populism, humour, and insults. Second, at an empirical level, I argue that the 2018 mass protests against the political elite in Romania were unique in that they turned a gendered and violent insult into a guiding political slogan, reiterated across both high and popular culture. Influential intellectuals, such as Gabriel Liiceanu, the most reputed public philosopher in Romania, proclaimed that this was a “swear (înjurătură) that unites us all” inspiring a new anti-communist “revolution”. By examining both the political imagination of the “institutional intellectuals” and popular artefacts (from T-shirts to popular songs), I interpret the Romanian protests and the role of “bad language” and populist humour as an expression of the carnivalization of politics and the intensification of antagonism in post-communist Romania.

Suggested Citation

  • Camil Ungureanu, 2024. "“The revolution born out of a swear”: populist humour, carnivalization, and mass protest in Romania," Journal of Contemporary Central and Eastern Europe, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(2), pages 477-498, May.
  • Handle: RePEc:taf:cdebxx:v:32:y:2024:i:2:p:477-498
    DOI: 10.1080/25739638.2024.2375157
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