Dacia Maraini

Uno spaccato in forma teatrale sulla vita di Veronica Franco, cortigiana e poetessa, celebrata per la sua straordinaria bellezza e vissuta a Venezia dal 1546 al 1591. Non rispetta la realtà storica (Veronica Franco non si ammalò di peste, per esempio), ma sfrutta la figura della Franco per esplorare come la schiavitù del corpo fosse necessaria per conquistare quella dello scrittoio.

You would as well look for blood in a corpse as for the least shred of decency in a man . . . Without help from their wives, men are just like unlit lamps . . . Just think of them as an unreliable clock that tells you it's ten o'clock when it's in fact barely two . . . A man without a woman is like a fly without a head . . . These are but a small selection of the quips bandied about at this lively gathering of women. The broad topic at hand is the relative pros and cons of men, and the cases in point range from pick-up artists to locker-room talk, and from double standards to fragile masculinity. Yet this dialogue unfolds not among ironically misandrist millenials venting at their local dive bar, but rather among sixteenth-century women--variously married, widowed, single, and betrothed--attending a respectable Venice garden party. Written in the early 1590s by Moderata Fonte, pseudonym of the Renaissance poet and writer Modesta Pozzo, this literary dialogue interrogates men and men's treatment of women, and explores by contrast the virtues of singledom and female friendship. As the women diverge from their theme--discussing everything from astrology to the curative powers of plants and minerals--a remarkable group portrait of wisdom, wit, and erudition emerges. A new introduction by translator Virginia Cox and foreword by Dacia Maraini situate The Merits of Women in its historical context, written as it was on the cusp of Shakespeare's heyday, and straddling the centuries between the feminist works of Christine de Pizan and Mary Wollstonecraft. Elegantly presented for a general audience, this is a must-read for baby feminists and "nasty women" alike, not to mention the perfect subtle gift for any mansplaining friend who needs a refresher on the merits of women . . . and their superiority to men -- Provided by publisher.

"Palermo, Sicily. In the Piazza Marina a large crowd has gathered to witness the public hanging of a young brigand. Duke Signoretto di Fontanasalsa, leader of the Noble Fathers of the Inquisition, is in attendance, and with him is his deaf-mute daughter, Marianna, who is seven years old. The child watches as the rope is slipped round the prisoner's neck; there is a roll of drums and the hangman kicks away the box on which the boy is standing; the body drops and starts to rotate. The execution over, the Duke turns to his daughter: surely such a sight will force her to speak? But she remains silent and trembling, clinging to the folds of her father's robes."-- Publisher description.

Although many writers blend autobiography and fiction, few have been so forthright in admitting it as Gustave Flaubert. Reflecting on his legendary novel and protagonist, he wrote: "Madame Bovary, c'est moi." Emma Bovary has become an icon for casual readers and feminists alike, but, as Dacia Maraini argues, she is one of the most problematic, though fascinating, female protagonists in modern literature. In this lively, learned, and very personal study, Maraini explores the profound and contradictory relationship between the writer Flaubert and the captivating heroine of his masterpiece. Maraini argues that in their desire to claim Emma Bovary as a standard-bearer of revolt against patriarchal society, women have often overlooked the bitter, pitiless way in which Flaubert evokes Emma's insignificance and vulgarity. Searching for Emma guides us through Flaubert's novel and many of his letters, seeking out the sources of his obsessive cruelty toward Emma. Maraini relates Flaubert's contempt for Emma to his relationship with his mistress, Louise Colet, to his general terror of women, and to his own self-loathing. It was entirely in spite of himself, Maraini writes, that Flaubert created the female Don Quixote so admired for her restless spirit and ambition.

"The seeds for the twelve interconnected crime stories in Darkness came from the pages of the Italian daily papers. In sparse prose that echoes the files of a police report, Dacia Maraini gives a resounding voice to the string of victims who receive only fleeting mention in the media each day. Among them is twelve-year-old Viollca, an Albanian sold into prostitution by her parents, who hope she will soon return with enough money to pay for her dowry and a new roof. And the boy Tano, who brings charges of physical abuse against his father. Two years and the death of his younger brother pass before anyone at the police station will believe him. Linking the collection together is Adele Sofia, a steel-nerved though tenderhearted police commissioner with a penchant for licorice at various points on the investigative trail, and whose job it is to hunt down those who prey on society's weakest and most vulnerable members. Told in a straight forward, unforgettably powerful and affecting manner in which the facts speak for themselves, Darkness illuminates the underbelly of Rome. With absorbing compassion and discretion Maraini creates a cast of characters who wake up each morning to a reality quite different from la dolce vita."--BOOK JACKET.

xxix, 205 p. ; 22 cm

"Emanuele è un bambino ribelle e pieno di vita che vuole costruirsi un paio di ali per volare come gli uccelli. Emanuele ha sempre addosso un odore sottile di piedi sudati e ginocchia scortecciate, l'"odore dell'allegria". Emanuele si arrampica sui ciliegi e si butta a capofitto in bicicletta giù per strade sterrate. Ma tutto ciò che resta di lui e' un pugno di lettere, e un quaderno nascosto in un muro nel ghetto di Lodz. Per ritrovare le sue tracce, Amara, l'inseparabile amica d'infanzia, attraversa l'Europa del 1956 su un treno che si ferma a ogni stazione, ha i sedili decorati con centrini fatti a mano e puzza di capra bollita e sapone al permanganato. Amara visita sgomenta ciò che resta del girone infernale di Auschwitz-Birkenau, percorre le strade di Vienna alla ricerca di sopravvissuti, giunge a Budapest mentre scoppia la rivolta degli ungheresi, e trema con loro quando i colpi dei carri armati russi sventrano i palazzi. Nella sua avventura, e nei destini degli uomini e delle donne con cui si intreccia la sua vita, si rivela il senso della catastrofe e dell'abisso in cui è precipitato il Novecento, e insieme la speranza incoercibile di un mondo diverso."--Back cover.

Three plays by Dacia Maraini