Italy and Its Discontents: Family, Civil Society, State 1980-2001 - Hardcover

Ginsborg, Paul

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1403961522 ISBN 13: 9781403961525

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan, 2002

Synopsis

A major bestseller in Italy, Paul Ginsborg's account of this most recent and dynamic period in Italy's history is essential reading for anyone wishing to understand contemoprary Italy. Ginsborg chronicles a period that witnessed a radical transformation in the country's social, economic and political landscape, creating a fascinating and definitve account of how Italy has coped or failed to cope as it moves from one century to the next. With particular emphasis on its role in italian life, work and culture Ginsborg shows how smaller families, longer lives and greater generation crossover have had significant effects on Italian society. Ginsborg looks at the 2000 elections, the influence of the Mafia, the decline of both Communism and Catholicism, and the change in national identity. This is modern history at its best.

About this title

Review:

It's easy to misinterpret or over-simplify the social, political and economic history of contemporary Italy. Too many of the events of the last twenty years seem designed to coincide with (and confirm) stereotyped images of the country. Administrative chaos and corruption revealed in the "Tangentopoli" scandals of the 90s. Mafia wars, assassinations and organised crime. Unpredictable and crisis-ridden government culminating in the emergence of Silvio Berlusconi as a political force.

In Italy and Its Discontents Paul Ginsborg avoids easy answers to difficult questions. He aims to provide a coherent analysis of contemporary Italy and he does so by structuring his book around the continuing importance of the family in Italian society. Both as reality and as metaphor the family is shown still to be at the heart of any understanding of the country. Family-run businesses dominate the economy, family contacts are used to deal with the twists and turns of the bureaucracy, political parties and the Catholic church alike continue to use the language of family in their propaganda. Ginsborg marshals an impressive array of detail and fact to support his subtle and intelligent interpretations of the last 20 years of Italian history. His book can sometimes seem dry and even (at times) forbiddingly academic, but for anyone looking to know more about the real rather than the stereotypical Italy of the last twenty years, it is essential reading. --Nick Rennison

Review:

.,."Complex and fertile with thick description, [the book] radiates the paradoxes and ironies that abound in a troubled country." -- Stanislao G. Pugliese "New York Times Book Review" (02/23/2003)

About this edition

• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 1403961522
• ISBN 13: 9781403961525
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 576