The poet Ileana Malancioiu is known for her original and compelling voice. That voice draws its substance from the rich resources of the Romanian language, traditions, and legends; from the poet's firm moral stance; and from a tragic existential vision inspired by the Romanian experience.

Ileana Malancioiu was born on 23 January 1940 in the village of Godeni, Arges, the second of four daughters of a peasant couple. Her poetry is deeply rooted in her rural origins. As Gabriela Melinescu puts it, "Malancioiu believes in the ancient traditions which teach man to conquer the irrational by creating daily rituals within the frames of nature. . . . [Her poetry] turns into ritual everything that goes by the name of man's existential experience: the yoke of history, love, marriage, mistakes, and the presence of animals."

Malancioiu made her literary debut in the cultural weekly Luceafarul (The Morning Star) in 1965, when she was a student...