20-24 septembrie 2009 - Biblioteca Metropolitana Bucuresti

890 Viorel StănilăIn theories of national edification, intelligence is what is called onto put into motion and organize the collectivity towards achieving theirnational dreams. In turn, the elite need the involvement of the masses in theprocess of national emancipation, in order to justify the ethnic discourse 12 .The maturation process of the ethic consciousness can not be produceswithout the involvement of the masses which constitute the very culture.Or, which is the case with Aromanians in Albania, for the economicand intellectual elite, the own interests and profit are more important thanthe national cause, which shows the low degree of national consciousnessof the Aromanian “Bourgeoisie” 13 . In turn, given the circumstances of thecountry life at the time, the Aromanian population in the villages was beingmaintained to a level of collective proto-ethnic consciousness, in which theperpetuation of traditional relationships of local authority was encouraged,based on kinship and clientele relationship, despite the superior stages ofethnic and national organization.To sum it up, this issue is expressed in very direct terms:“…but the conscious Romanian intellectuals from the cities(in fact quite a few) could not leave the initiative in such animportant matter at the population in villages, which is naturallyless conscious and more indifferent concerning national Romanianissues…”The Romanian diplomats called the attention to the stringency withwhich the issue of drawing in elites into the national project was beingplaced under question: “The winning back of the Aromanian bourgeois,which is about to fade quickly amidst the Albanian majority (or Slavonicin Bitolia), is thus a very urgent problem if we mean to maintain theRomanian movement in the Balkans mostly, and especially in Albania andthe neighbouring regions, with a spiritual life which is more susceptibleto development and a prestige which is much higher and fitting for themeaning of Romania in the Balkans.” (Telegram)2. Aromanian agriculturalists from the Muzăchiei DepressionSynthesis:”these who live in small, astray groups among the Albaniansand away from the more conscious Romanian centers have a lessdeveloped Romanian consciousness and their language is morewretched and full of Albanian words”.12Ibidem, 86.13Ibidem, 25.