The Mirage of America in Contemporary Italian Literature and Film

__The Mirage of America in Contemporary Italian Literature and Film__ explores the use of images associated with the United States in Italian novels and films released between the 1980s and the 2000s.

The Mirage of America in Contemporary Italian Literature and Film explores the use of images associated with the United States in Italian novels and films released between the 1980s and the 2000s. In this study, Barbara Alfano looks at the ways in which the individuals portrayed in these works – and the intellectuals who created them – confront the cultural construct of the American myth. As Alfano demonstrates, this myth is an integral part of Italians’ discourse to define themselves culturally – in essence, Italian intellectuals talk about America often for the purpose of talking about Italy.

The book draws attention to the importance of Italian literature and film as explorations of an individual’s ethics, and to how these productions allow for functioning across cultures. It thus differentiates itself from other studies on the subject that aim at establishing the relevance and influence of American culture on Italian twentieth-century artistic representations.

Contents 5 Acknowledgments 7 Introduction 9 1. Wandering Subjects 38 2. America Ubiqua 66 3. On a Trip to America: The “I” Travels 93 4. American Arcadia 118 5. Historicizing the Dream: A Documented Eye on America 141 Conclusion 162 Notes 169 Works Cited 187 Index of Names and Titles 197