Although the unification of Italy in 1870 initially defined the nation's geographical boundaries, Italians faced challenges of determining their nation's social, political and cultural identity. This volume examines the struggle to recast the nation according to their visions.
Through most of their history, Italians have identified more with their own locales than with what is now known as Italy. This comprehensive reference allows readers to view the land as its denizens have for centuries--regionally. Domenico superbly surveys the regional and provincial characteristics and culture of the 20 regions, including economy, cuisine, history, recent politics, and arts. This is the only single general reference volume in English on Italy's regions and will be highly in demand by teachers, students of Italian language and culture, and travelers. Italy's enormous contributions to western civilization continue to make it a cultural and economic powerhouse and a top tourist destination. The Regions of Italy succinctly conveys the formidable richness of the whole through its parts, with a user-friendly format that makes it easy to glean the important information on the area of interest. A chronology, glossary, and wide selection of photos accompany the text.
Italy’s economic expansion after World War Two triggered significant social and cultural change. Secularization accompanied this development and triggered alarm bells across the nation’s immense Catholic community. The Devil and the Dolce Vita is the story of that community – the church of Popes Pius XII, John XXIII and Paul VI, the lay Catholic Action association, and the Christian Democratic Party – and their efforts in a series of culture wars to preserve a traditional way of life and to engage and tame the challenges of a rapidly modernizing society. Roy Domenico begins this study during the heady days of the April 1948 Christian Democratic electoral triumph and ends when pro-divorce forces dealt the Catholics a defeat in the referendum of May 1974 where their hopes crashed and probably ended. Between those two dates Catholics engaged secularists in a number of battles – many over film and television censorship, encountering such figures as Roberto Rossellini, Luchino Visconti, Federico Fellini, and Pier Paolo Pasolini. The Venice Film Festival became a locus in the fight as did places like Pozzonovo, near Padua, where the Catholics directed their energies against a Communist youth organization; and Prato in Tuscany where the bishop led a fight to preserve church weddings. Concern with proper decorum led to more skirmishes on beaches and at resorts over modest attire and beauty pageants. By the 1960s and 1970s other issues, such as feminism, a new frankness about sexual relations, and the youth rebellion emerged to contribute to a perfect storm that led to the divorce referendum and widespread despair in the Catholic camp.
Although the unification of Italy in 1870 initially defined the nation's geographic boundaries, Italians faced the new challenge of determining their nation's social, political, and cultural identity as they entered the twentieth century. In Remaking Italy in the Twentieth Century, noted scholar Roy P. Domenico examines the struggle between Liberals, Fascists, Marxists, and Catholics to recast the nation according to their visions. As he focuses on Italy's political course, Domenico deftly highlights the economic, social, and cultural changes that accompanied the shifts in governmental power. In describing those who shaped modern Italy, Domenico reveals how an agricultural society—divided by region, language, and culture—was transformed into a modern state, still faced with regional tension, ethnic division, and the problems inherent in post-modern society. Straightforward and succinct, Remaking Italy in the Twentieth Century will be of great value to all interested in Italian history and culture.
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