We, The Divided: Ethos, Politics and Culture in Post-war Italy, 1943 - 2006 - Softcover

Bodei, Remo

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1946328596 ISBN 13: 9781946328595

Publisher: Agincourt Press, 2025

Synopsis

In this history of Italian culture and philosophy from the founding of the Italian Republic to the present day, philosopher Remo Bodei examines Italian society in one of the most exhilarating and intriguing periods of its history. Following World War II and the defeat of Fascism, the reconstruction of the country and onset of the Cold War brought new challenges to Italy. The Italian people-- whose sense of national identity has always been precarious-- were divided between the competing political passions and ideologies of Catholicism and Communism, and compelled to negotiate these differences against the backdrop of both American cultural and economic hegemony and the utopian enticements of a more equitable society purportedly represented by the Soviet Union.

Alternating between imaginative historical research and sharp theoretical analysis, Bodei reconstructs this process of cultural negotiation, showing how the ethos of the Italian people was parsed in specific spheres, such as the family, the military, political parties, religion, the judiciary, and organized crime. He examines both the ways in which philosophers have sought to make sense of the ethical and political problems the Italian people have had to confront, as well as the decisions effectively taken by individuals and groups. Bodei concludes with some reflections upon the difficulties and challenges that Italy faces in an increasingly interdependent world.

About this title

About the Author

Remo Bodei is professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He taught for many years at the Scuola Normale Superiore and the University of Pisa and has lectured at many European and American universities. His books, which have been translated into French, Spanish, German, and Portuguese, include: Scomposizioni. Forme dell'individuo moderno (1987); Geometria delle passioni (1991); Le forme del bello (1995); Ordo amoris (1997); Le logiche del delirio (2000) and Destini personali. L'età della colonizzazione delle coscienze (2002), Pyramid di tempo. Storie e teoria del déjà vu (2006). We, the Divided is Bodei's first book to appear in English.

Edition details

• Publisher: Agincourt Press
• Publication date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1946328596
• ISBN 13: 9781946328595
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 184