Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
A sweeping, first-of-its-kind history of the creation of modern Italy
The birth of modern Italy was a messy affair. Inspired by a small group of writers, intellectuals, and politicians, Italy struggled in the first half of the nineteenth century to unite all Italians under one rule, throwing aside a multitude of corrupt old rulers and foreign occupiers. In the midst of this turmoil, Italian politicians felt compelled by a and#147;force of destinyand#8221; hideously at odds with Italian reality. After great sacrifice Italy was finally unified -- and turned out to be just as fragile, impoverished, and backward as it had been before. The resentments this created led to Italyand#8217;s destructive role in World War I, the subsequent rise of Mussolini and authoritarianism in the 1920s and and#8217;30s, and the nation's humiliating defeat in World War II. This haunting legacy deeply informs the Italy of today.
Christopher Duggan skillfully interweaves Italy's art, music, literature, and architecture with its economic and social realities and political development to tell this extraordinary European story. The first English-language book to cover the full scope of modern Italy, from its origins more than two hundred years ago to the present, The Force of Destiny is a brilliant and comprehensive study -- and a frightening example of how easily nation-building and nationalism can slip toward authoritarianism and war.
Synopsis
The first English language book to cover the full scope of modern Italy, from its official birth to today, "The Force of Destiny" is a brilliant and comprehensive study and a frightening example of how easily nation-building and nationalism can slip toward authoritarianism and war.
About the Author
CHRISTOPHER DUGGAN is a professor and director of the Center for Modern Italian History at the University of Reading, Great Britain. The author of several books on Italian history, his writing has appeared in the New York Times, American Historical Review, English Historical Review, and the Times Literary Supplement.
Table of Contents
Contents List of Illustrations xi List of Maps xiii Preface xv
Part One: Awakening, 1796and#150;1815 1 Deliverance, 1796and#150;9 3 2 Searching for the Nationand#8217;s Soul 24 3 Conspiracy and Resistance 48
Part Two: Preaching, 1815and#150;46 4 Restoration, Romanticism and Revolt, 1815and#150;30 71 5 Fractured Past and Fractured Present 90 6 Apostles and Martyrs: Mazzini and the Democrats, 1830and#150;44 116 7 Educators and Reformers: The Moderates 144
Part Three: Poetry, 1846and#150;60 8 Revolution, 1846and#150;9 165 9 Piedmont and Cavour 181 10 Unity, 1858and#150;60 198
Part Four: Prose, 1861and#150;87 11 The New State 217 12 The Road to Rome, 1861and#150;70 242 13 The Threat from the South, 1870and#150;85 259 14 National Education 274 15 Sources of Authority: King, Church and Parliament, 1870and#150;87 298
Part Five: War, 1887and#150;1918 16 Francesco Crispi and the and#145;New European Orderand#8217;, 1887and#150;91 323 17 The Fin de Siccle Crisis 338 18 Rival Religions: Socialism and Catholicism 350 19 Nationalism 374 20 The Great War, 1915and#150;18 390
Part Six: Fascism, 1919and#150;43 21 Civil War and the Advent of Fascism, 1919and#150;22 407 22 The Establishment of a Dictatorship, 1922and#150;5 433 23 The Fascist Ethical State 449 24 Community of Believers 475 25 A Place in the Sun, 1929and#150;36 488 26 Into the Abyss, 1936and#150;43 506
Part Seven: Parties 27 The Foundations of the Republic, 1943and#150;57 529 28 The Economic Miracle, 1958and#150;75 548 29 Towards the and#145;Second Republicand#8217; 568
References 588 Index 627