Modern Italian Literature: 24 (Cultural History of Literature) - Softcover

Hallamore Caesar, Ann; Caesar, Michael

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0745628001 ISBN 13: 9780745628004

Publisher: Polity, 2007

Synopsis

This authoritative and vividly written book brings readers into the heart of Italian literary culture from the 1690s to the present. It probes the work of major authors in their broad cultural context, traces the history of audiences and publishers, explores the shifting relationship between public and private, assesses the impact of significant historical trends and events on creative processes, and establishes the continuities as well as the discontinuities of the Italian literary tradition. A synoptic overview at the beginning of the volume is designed to help the reader get her or his bearings in the detail of the nine chapters which follow. Using an essentially chronological framework, the book is divided into three major cultural time-spans: the long eighteenth century, the decades of national identity formation and the creation of modern', industrial Italy between 1816 and 1900, and the twentieth century with its constant renegotiation of national cultural identity. A final epilogue provides a snapshot of Italian literary culture in the near-present. This is a book which will be readily accessible to students and all those interested in Italian culture, and at the same time is based on the most up-to-date scholarship. New readings of the canonical authors rub shoulders with a refreshing attention to standard and popular writing, gender issues, and the interaction between written and oral forms, producing a history of modern Italian literature which is new in its conception and its scope.

About this title

Review

"An intelligent and engaging blend of cultural and literary history, this volume provides a highly readable overview of modern Italian literature, which ranges from the eighteenth century to today. A most valuable study for both experts and students."

Rebecca West, University of Chicago

"A brilliant book that moves with agility through the centuries, authors, and historical events. It is a cultural and literary guide that any student of Italian should rely on."

Graziella Parati, Dartmouth College

"This is a superb, stimulating and lucid work of synthesis, tracing the evolution of Italian literature from the late seventeenth century to the present day. As well as revisiting major figures and others lost in the archive, the book uses the literary field to explore a fascinating series of subterranean patterns in Italy's modern cultural history."

Robert Gordon, University of Cambridge

About the Author

Ann Hallamore Caesar is Professor of Italian at the University of Warwick. Michael Caesar is Serena Professor of Italian at the University of Birmingham.

About this edition

• Publisher: Polity
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0745628001
• ISBN 13: 9780745628004
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 248