Laughter from Realism to Modernism: Misfits and Humorists in Pirandello, Svevo, Palazzeschi, and Gadda (Italian Perspectives)

"As best exemplified by the works of Pirandello, Svevo, Palazzeschi, and Gadda, Italian modernist fiction is particularly rich in bizarre and ludicrous characters, whose originality is often derided by a uniform society. On the other hand, laughter can also be used by the author (or by the misfits themselves) as a reaction to the levelling pressure of social life - Pirandello's umorismo, Svevo's irony, Palazzeschi's controdolore, and Gadda's satire are all good cases in point. Looked at from this perspective, early 20th-century Italian fiction can set the basis for an innovative reflection on broader comparative themes. What is the role of laughter and individual diversity in international Modernism? How is modernist eccentricity related to the representations of originality in the 18th and 19th centuries, from Sterne to Balzac and Dostoevsky? And what does it tell us about the fear of homogenisation as a crucial aspect of the modern social imaginary? Building on the analysis of a large corpus of short stories and other major works by the Italian authors at issue, as well as on a series of previously undetected intertextual links with the classics of European Realism, this book is the first systematic attempt at answering such questions. Alberto Godioli is Teaching Fellow in Italian at the University of Edinburgh." Cover Half Title Title Copyright CONTENTS Acknowledgements Abbreviations Used Introduction: Laughter, Modernism, and Originality 1 Laughter and Originality: From Sterne to Pirandello Shaftesbury vs Hobbes: Laughter and Tolerance Originality in France Laughter and Violence: From Balzac to Bergson ‘An Unheard-of Event that Occurred’: Irregularity and the Short Story 2 Umorismo and Madness: Pirandello’s Originals Laughter and Oddity in Novelle per un anno Sternian Misfits: Perazzetti, Marco Leccio, and Spatolino Convicts and Fugitives: Eccentricity and Insanity in Pirandello and Dostoevsky The King’s Moustache: Maupassant and Originality Laughter and the Norm: A Double Bind 3 Violence, Bad Faith, and Hypocrisy: Truth and Deception in Svevo’s Laughter Irony and the Romantic Lie An Education in Bad Faith: Perfect Hoaxes from Balzac to Svevo Saints and Imposters: Dostoevsky in ‘Corto Viaggio Sentimentale’ Svevo, Ojetti, and the Smile of the Old Man Laughing about Everything: Svevo, Flaubert, and Modernism 4 Celebrations of Diversity: Palazzeschi’s Buffi and the Nineteenth-Century Tradition From the Clown to the Buffo: Avant-Garde and Originality Short Stories and ‘Natural Divergences’ The ‘Buffi’ and the Pathetic Grotesque (Maupassant, Hugo) Novelistic Models: Balzac, Flaubert, and Manzoni A Modernist Gallery of Originals: Il palio as a Macro-Text 5 ‘The Stupidity of the World’: Satire and Common Nonsense in Gadda’s Fiction Equality as Abstraction The Hardened Individual: Gonzalo and Other Caricatures The Society of Equals: From Balzac to Flaubert Swift or Boccaccio? Gadda’s Short Stories and the Ambiguities of Laughter Conclusion: Italian Modernism and the Fear of Uniformity Appendix Bibliography Index As best exemplified by the works of Pirandello, Svevo, Palazzeschi, and Gadda, Italian modernist fiction is particularly rich in bizarre and ludicrous characters, whose originality is often derided by a uniform society. On the other hand, laughter can also be used by the author (or by the misfits themselves) as a reaction to the levelling pressure of social life {u2013} Pirandello{u2019}s umorismo, Svevo{u2019}s irony, Palazzeschi{u2019}s controdolore, and Gadda{u2019}s satire are all good cases in point. Looked at from this perspective, early 20th-century Italian fiction can set the basis for an innovative reflection on broader comparative themes. What is the role of laughter and individual diversity in international Modernism? How is modernist eccentricity related to the representations of originality in the 18th and 19th centuries, from Sterne to Balzac and Dostoevsky? And what does it tell us about the fear of homogenisation as a crucial aspect of the modern social imaginary? Building on the analysis of a large corpus of short stories and other major works by the Italian authors at issue, as well as on a series of previously undetected intertextual links with the classics of European Realism, this book is the first systematic attempt at answering such questions. -- From publisher's website As best exemplified by the works of Pirandello, Svevo, Palazzeschi, and Gadda, Italian modernist fiction is rich in bizarre and ludicrous characters, whose originality is often derided by a uniform society. On the other hand, laughter can also be used by the author (or by the misfits themselves) as a reaction to the leveling pressure of social life - Pirandello's umorismo, Svevo's irony, Palazzeschi's controdolore, and Gadda's satire are all good cases in point. Looked at from this perspective, early 20th-century Italian fiction can set the basis for an innovative reflection on broader comparative themes. This book explores questions such as: What is the role of laughter and individual diversity in international Modernism? How is modernist eccentricity related to the representations of originality in the 18th and 19th centuries, from Sterne to Balzac and Dostoevsky? And what does it tell us about the fear of homogenization as a crucial aspect of the modern social imaginary? This book investigates the clash between social uniformity and personal anomalies as a key to understanding the functions of laughter in four major Italian authors from the early twentieth century, highlighting some essential differences between traditional realism and modernism.