Beyond Pinocchio: Political and Cultural Dissonance in Carlo Collodi's Primers (1877-1890)

Beyond Pinocchio challenges Collodi's reputation as a supporter of bourgeois values by examining his primers and debunking Italian bourgeois propaganda. It reveals a multicultural Italy where the family is an empty concept and linguistic diversity is an asset.

Format: Hardback
Length: 208 pages
Publication date: 30 October 2023
Publisher: Lexington Books

Beyond Pinocchio is a meticulous examination of renowned author Carlo Collodis primers and his debunking Italian bourgeois propaganda ‘from within. In his government-approved books for primary school,Collodi offered a view of society that was dissonant with the one promoted by Italian middle class propaganda in its very core values: the family,the State,and the cultural homogenization. Collodis reputation as a supporter of bourgeois values has remained crystallized for decades,and even his most famous character,Pinocchio,has been seen as embodying those values for many years. Recently,however,this reputation has been questioned,thereby reframing the wooden puppet within an anti-establishment context. With this book,Andrea Pagani proves how even Collodis primers deserve a careful re-reading,throwing light on an author too quickly labelled as an uncritical son of his times. At a time when a newborn State was aiming towards a standardized national community,Collodi wrote of a multicultural Italy,where the family is an empty concept,and linguistic diversity is an asset rather than a hindrance.

Weight: 458g
Dimension: 238 x 160 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781666917321