Sentences : the memoirs and letters of Italian political prisoners from Benvenuto Cellini to Aldo Moro / Charles Klopp.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Klopp, Charles, author.

Series:

Toronto Italian studies

Toronto Italian Studies

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Political prisoners' writings, Italian--History and criticism.

Political prisoners' writings, Italian.

Political prisoners--Italy--Intellectual life.

Political prisoners.

Politics and literature--Italy--History.

Politics and literature.

Liberty in literature.

Italy.

Genre:

Livres numeriques.

Criticism, interpretation, etc.

History.

e-books.

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (293 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Toronto, [Ontario] ; Buffalo, [New York] ; London, [England] : University of Toronto Press, 1999.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Although there exist a number of studies on prison writing from various countries, Sentences is the first comprehensive examination of autobiographical prison literature from Italy. Klopp has assembled a gallery of fascinating portraits in this chronological survey of prison writings by more than three dozen Italian political figures and intellectuals - including Cellini, Casanova, Tasso, the Martyrs of Mantua, Enrichetta Caracciolo, Gramsci - all of whom were imprisoned for their political convictions. Drawing on prison writings from periods that include the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, the Risorgimento, the rise of socialism and women's rights, and the years of Fascism, Sentences makes a valuable contribution to social and political history.Through clear and sensitive analysis of sample passages Klopp is able to draw insightful conclusions, pointing out the rich intertextual allusions among these diverse prison texts. This survey of writers from different centuries, who espoused very different political points of view, reveals common traits that unite these otherwise dissimilar individuals. A final chapter discussing letters composed by Aldo Moro while he was held hostage by the terrist Red Brigades in the 1970s is especially provocative because it places him within the tradition of writing by individuals imprisoned by the state.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Preface

Introduction: Writing As Survival

1. Predecessors: Prison Writing before 1800

2. The Spielberg: Concealment and Refutation

3. Bodies Politic

4. Authority, Desire, and Dissent: Serving the Revolution

5. Answering Gramsci: The Anti-Fascists

6. The Death of a President / The Effacement of an Author

Conclusion: Sentences and Convictions

Notes

Works Consulted

Index

Notes:

Description based upon print version of record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

1-282-03715-3

9786612037153

1-4426-7978-6

OCLC:

944177569