Towards a Unified Italy
Historical, Cultural, and Literary Perspectives on the Southern Question
Authors: Di Maria, Salvatore
Free Preview- Examines the cultural and socioeconomic divide between Northern and Southern Italy from unification in 1860 to the present day
- Re-evaluates the narratives that have fueled the North-South divide from cultural, literary, and historical perspectives
- Offers new insight into post-unification Italy and Italian national identity
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- About this book
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Since unification in 1860, Italy has remained bitterly divided between the rich North and the underdeveloped South. This book examines the historical, literary, and cultural contexts that have informed and inflamed the debate on the Southern Question for over a century. It brings together analysis of cinema, literature, and newspaper archives to reconsider the myths and stereotypes that both Northerners and Southerners deploy in their narratives. Salvatore DiMaria offers a masterful assessment of the entangled issues that have produced the South’s image as impoverished and backwards, such as organized crime, illiteracy, and mass emigration. Documenting the state’s largely failed efforts to bring the South into its socio-economic fold, DiMaria also points to the future, arguing that the European Union and globalization are transformative forces that may finally produce a unified Italy.
- About the authors
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Salvatore DiMaria is Professor of Italian at the University of Tennessee, USA.
- Reviews
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“This book brings deep scholarship and insight to bear upon the Southern Question as no previous work has done before. A groundbreaking study that moves between North and South and between culture, history, cinema, and politics to address complex cultural issues such as criminality, emigration, and illiteracy.” (Michael Lettieri, Professor of Italian Studies, University of Toronto, Canada)
“A much-needed reassessment of the long-held myth that Italy is an irredeemably divided nation. In deft, captivating prose, Salvatore DiMaria offers insights into a number of key issues in post-unified Italy and its political economy.” (Eugenia Paulicelli, Professor of Italian Studies and Comparative Literature, Queens College and the Graduate Center, CUNY, USA)
- Table of contents (8 chapters)
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Introduction: The Southern Question
Pages 1-27
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In Defense of Garibaldi
Pages 29-54
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Brigands: Criminals or Patriots?
Pages 55-84
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The Underdeveloped South
Pages 85-109
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Emigration
Pages 111-138
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Table of contents (8 chapters)
Bibliographic Information
- Bibliographic Information
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- Book Title
- Towards a Unified Italy
- Book Subtitle
- Historical, Cultural, and Literary Perspectives on the Southern Question
- Authors
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- Salvatore Di Maria
- Series Title
- Italian and Italian American Studies
- Copyright
- 2018
- Publisher
- Palgrave Macmillan
- Copyright Holder
- The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s)
- eBook ISBN
- 978-3-319-90766-6
- DOI
- 10.1007/978-3-319-90766-6
- Hardcover ISBN
- 978-3-319-90765-9
- Softcover ISBN
- 978-3-030-08094-5
- Edition Number
- 1
- Number of Pages
- XV, 263
- Number of Illustrations
- 8 b/w illustrations
- Topics
