Category Archives: Post 7

Of Minor Importance

The minor character that interests me most is Gino. Not much is told about him besides him being the son of the pharmacist and a facist. It is strange how Lenù and Lila have very little relationship with him, especially in comparison to other minor characters. Even if the two do not have consistently good relationships with the other characters, such as with the Solaras, they are still mentioned, and details are known about them. 

Gino is spoken of when Lenù is in high school, but afterwards, we don’t know much about his life. We know very little about how he came to become a facist. When Gino is mentioned it is in negative lights. There is a very negative scene when Lila sees Gino at the factory. They both verbally insult each other, before Gino tells her “… yesterday afternoon I asked that cuckold your husband for permission to beat you up and he said yes.” (page 148, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay).

When Lenù is given the news of Gino’s murder, Lenù first thinks “that she was giving me that news because the son of the pharmacist was part of our early adolescence and, fascist or not, certainly that event would upset me. But the reason was not to share with me the horror of that violent death.” (page 293, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay) This shows that even when he has been murdered, Gino is not the main topic. Elena has much more sympathy for Gino’s parents after his death that for him, recalling how kind they are. 

Even after his death Elena writes how the murderer shot at his “thug’s body” (page 313, Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay). The difference between how the personalities of other minor characters, such as Gigliola, Carmem, are shown much more deeply than Gino’s despite them all having grown up together.

Politics, God and sex

Elena has found a calling writing articles about workers struggles at the Soccavo factory in the local communist newspaper L’Unita. She had taken the paper of demands for improving working conditions written by Lila to create and write an article and instantly becomes somewhat of an expert on and darling of the political left. Does Elena breaks though the margins the smarginatura by writing for the newspaper because a serious novelist at the time in Italy would never consider doing so?  I posed a question to Lynn Nesbit renown literary agent, would she discourage her authors from writing journalistic pieces for a newspaper. She answered absolutely not in fact it would help sales of books. But then she added she did not know the publishing business in Italy and perhaps it’s different there.  

Although Elena gets the fame and credit it’s Lila that does the heavy lifting. Unwilling initially in getting involved, it is Pasquale who talks her into helping because she has the intelligence that he lacks. So it is Lila that becomes the point of the spear. It is Lila that writes the demands, who takes insults and threats from fellow employee and who bring the paper of demands to Bruno and puts her job in jeopardy. 

Julie writes of the turbulent times and social upheaval in the 60s and 70s. That students revolt against a “antiquated , rigid educational system and a capitalist patriarchal society.” But with all history there is conflicting opinions of political movements and their results. Some like respected Italian historian Indro Montanelli states that the sessatotto was a “lost of civility, where horde of illiterates invaded public and private lives with their ignorance” so some may have called it a “myth” others say that what was left behind was the ‘statuto dei lavoro’ workers rights and this in itself was well worth the pain. Kelsey writes that Elena says “I never though of being a freelance journalist. I did it because it made me happy.” She is not only writing behind a typewriter she is taking to the streets and the picket lines. Not like what it seems to me what the elites Gallini and Airota families do, hiding in their crystal towers cheering the working man on to do their bidding. Paraskevi asks the question why have a priest validate a marriage? I would answer Elena mother was raised in cultural Catholicism where it was not a choice and church was a natural part of everyday life and not challenged. What the mother may not understand and a question Paraskey poses is can one be with God without religion? I certainly believe so and in times of hardship we even see Elena struggle with faith when asking the Virgin Mary for help. Ariana writes of the importance of language and how it can hold someone back socially and economically. That was true in Italy in the 60s and 70s as it is true today in America.  One’s speech, right or wrong is an indication of upbringing and education.   

One importation omission in the blogs was any comment of the “elephant in the room” or as Pasquale says about Lila “she’s not made for sex”. Later we find that Lila does not have or can not experience the full pleasure of sexual intercourse. In my thoughts she’s unavailable either physically or mentally to fulfill a complete organism. To do so would mean abandoning full control which she is unable to do

Indro Montanelli https://binged.it/2WHWGfM

https://www.pw.org/content/agents_amp_editors_qampa_agent_lynn_nesbit?article_page=1

The Godless Daughter

“She shouted that the marriage was worthless if the priest didn’t say that it was valid. She shouted that if I didn’t get married before God I would never be a wife but only a whore…she would never be able to go out of the house because of the shame of having a godless daughter” (Ferrante 49).

This episode takes place when Lenuccia is having a conversation with her mother about getting married to Pietro as soon as possible. Lenu’s mother, whose name still remains unknown, goes crazy and starts yelling at her oldest daughter for not wanting to get married at an altar, without a priest present to validate her marriage. Elena mentions that her mother herself is not religious; but the real reason why she wants her to have a reception iss because of what the people in the neighborhood would think of her daughter if she didn’t have one. The mother is clearly not pleased with her daughter’s decision not to have a ceremony at a church, but at the city hall, instead. She shouts curses at Elena and even compares a woman who doesn’t get married at church a “whore”. The mother would be so ashamed of her daughter’s decision of not having a Catholic marriage that she wouldn’t even leave her house. It’s ridiculous and fascinating at the same time, how religion lies under almost everything that is going on around us. A mother that is not religious is trying to persuade her daughter, who is also not religious, to get married at church just so she doesn’t end up being “godless”-whatever that is supposed to mean. Elena says that Pietro and his sister, Mariarosa, are not baptized and they wouldn’t baptize their kids, either. For Elena religion is not important, and I’m guessing the same thing about her mother. It’s amazing, however, to see the point of view of this era’s society on a female who does not wish to get her marriage validated by a priest. Another thing I don’t understand (maybe because I have a different perspective and grow up during a different time period) is: why does one have to go to church or be involved in it in order to be near God? Why is one who doesn’t go to church or doesn’t get married there “godless”? I thought that faith was something one carries within. But I guess this is a different matter of discussion.

Political Extremism and Social Fracture

The 1960s-1970s displayed a time of political extremism and social fracture in Naples and the rest of Italy. Ferrante’s inclusion of historical events creates authenticity and intimacy to the novel that affects both Elena and Lila distinctly as women, members of diverse classes and different careers.

Towards the beginning of “Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay,” Elena feels a sense that her novel is dismissed as foolish by Franco and Mariarosa in comparison to the current turmoil and activism. Elena states, “in those circles that were so caught up and sucked in by political passions my book was considered an insignificant little thing” (80). Additionally, Franco tells Elena that this is “not the moment for writing novels” (80).

When Elena is at a Communist meeting with Franco, Silvia, Juan, and Mariarosa she displays a sentiment of irritation towards the men in the room. She writes, “The result was that we found ourselves, we three women, in the situation of drowsy heifers waiting for the two bulls to complete the testing of their powers” (75), which displays the gender inequalities within the movement.

Elena stays with Lila in San Giovanni a Teduccio and Lila informs Elena on her involvement with anti-fascists. Lila also tells Elena about the horrible sausage factory and the sexual harassment of her boss. It is evident that Lila’s working-class circumstances influence her political awakening.

Elena also pays attention to the way the boys of the rione are involved in political extremism. She again alludes to gender inequality regarding the political movements of the time when she is with Pasquale and Enzo. She writes, “Maybe they had other male wars to fight” (151). I found the use of “male” as a compelling distinction that exposes Elena Greco and Elena Ferrante’s view towards the gender disparities.

Interactions with Historical Events

The setting of the novels taking place in 1960 onwards allows for Ferrante to incorporate real historical elements within her texts. When Authors do this, we as the audience are able to see how real life and fiction can connect with one another. This also allows for showing a different point of view of a historical event from the perception of the character(s) and how the Author incorporates it into the story. An example of this is in the third novel of the series, “Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay”. Ferrante references one of the many terrorists attacks that would follow after this attack that occured in December 1969; The bombing of the Banca Nazionale dell’Agricoltura in Milan’s Piazza Fontana (CNN).

“I traveled a lot in those months. I was invited here and there not only because of my book but also because of the articles I was writing, which in turn forced me to travel to see close up the new kinds of strike, the reactions of the owners. I never thought of trying to become a freelance journalist. I did it because doing it I was happy. I felt disobedient, in revolt and inflated with such power that my meekness seemed a disguise. In fact, it enabled me to join the pickets in front of the factories, to talk to workers, men and women, and to union officials, to slip out among the policemen. Nothing frightened me. When the Banca di Agricoltura in Milan was bombed I was in the city, at the publisher’s, but I wasn’t alarmed, I didn’t have dark pre-sentiments. I thought of myself as an unstoppable force, I thought I was invulnerable. No one could hurt me and my child.” (Volume 3, pg. 235).

In this excerpt we can clearly see Lenu’s point of view of this historical event as she was present when it happened. While this is occurring, we see that she is progressing in her writing career as well as taking part in protests. This event was incorporated to show a different side of Lenu as well as give more insight to her feelings as she states that being a participant in the pickets seemingly enhanced her resolve and made her feel free and untouchable.

Il Sessantotto: Social and Political Upheaval in 60s and 70s Italy

The larger world imposes itself briefly on Elena in volume 1, in Pasquale and Lila’s conversations about the Fascists, Monarchists, and camorristi in the rione. At Pisa, she allows herself to be carried along on her Communist boyfriend Franco’s passion for revolution, but has no real feeling about it. Early on in the third volume, Nino irrupts into Elena’s life, bringing politics and current events with him (Those Who Leave, p. 30-32), and from there they impose themselves on her life.

Elena marries Pietro in May of 1967 or 1968. In 1968, known as Il Sessantotto, the student and worker revolt began in earnest. It had started in fall 1967 in Turin and spread to Milan, Pisa, Florence, Rome, and Naples (“Italian Students in Revolt against Universities,” NYT, 2/9/1968). Autunno caldo of 1969–70 followed.

Students rose up because, with Italy’s economic miracle, many students from a peasant or working class background (Elena would not have been the only one) had entered university (Those Who Leave, p. 26-7, 54), and they were responsible for the beginnings of a revolt against an antiquated, rigid educational system and a capitalist, patriarchal society.

I am posting a few photographs (and an excerpt from a blog) for those who are too young to remember, and for myself, to remind myself, young as I was when it was happening, what those years were like. I had no idea then that young people and workers were protesting not only in the United States but also in France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and other countries.

https://digilander.libero.it/latesina2004/storia_2.htm
Student at nonviolent demonstration being carried out of a university, 1968. Author unknown. Wikimedia Commons.
Demonstration: clashes in the piazza, early 1970. A. Bonasia. Wikimedia Commons.
File:Roma68.jpg
Rome, February 1968. Student demonstration in front of the department of literature. Fausto Giaccone. Wikipedia.
Roberto Bartoli. http://robertobartali.it/cap01.htm
“Fu in un’università degli Stati Uniti, a Berkeley in California, che ebbe inizio la contestazione giovanile, una sorta di virus destinato presto a diffondersi in tutto il mondo. La protesta investì i valori di una società individualista e conformista, negando la presunta neutralità della scienza e delle istituzioni sociali; si rifiutò la repressione e l’autoritarismo delle vecchie generazioni in nome di un mondo più libero” (Il Sessantotto).
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Women’s demonstration in defense of the abortion law. Florence, 1975. Dino Fracchia/Alamy Stock Photo

Readings and post 7

Dear All,

Thank you again for your wonderful presentations. I hope you continued reading during our long break. You should get to p. 283 of Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay by next class. Please read also the essay by van Ness (the first part) if you haven’t done so. For your post 7 please focus on: new topics emerging from the narrative; the historical references; minor characters and how they are represented.

Please read other students’ comment and be respectful for the meta-poster and post in time.

If you haven’t done so, please take the survey.

Remember to bring back to class the notes that you took during the presentation.