Il romanzo della resistenza

Abstract

This thesis deals with the Italian "Resistance" Novel during the post-second World War period (1945-1968). It is centred on a detailed analysis of five major Italian novels linked to this period. These novels are Il sentiero dei nidi di ragno (194 7) by Italo Calvino, Il partigiano Johnny (1968) by Beppe Fenoglio, La casa in collina (1949) by Cesare Pavese, L 'Agnese va a morire (1949) by Renata Vigano, and Uomini e no (1945) by Elio Vittorini. This study consists of six chapters. The first chapter gives an overview of the Resistance Literature in Italy and the "Resistance" Novel in the European Nazi occupied Countries. The second chapter explores the concept of time. The third chapter investigates the concept of space and the fourth dwells on the themes of 'desert' and 'circle'. The fifth chapter deals with sensorial experiences of 'colour' and 'sound'. The sixth and final chapter looks into the dialectical relationship between the human person and the beast. This study also contains an appendix with a set of tables showing the number of occurrences of the above themes in the aforementioned novels