‘Victims of the Same Destiny’: Italy in the Postcolonial, the Postcolonial in Italy Thomas James Langley Submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of English Literature, Language, and Linguistics Newcastle University September 2015 ii Abstract This thesis concentrates on a series of canonical Italian anti-Fascist writers, and argues that their work is informed and underpinned by an engagement with colonialism. Working between Italian and English, the thesis establishes an original framework for comparative reading, in which it traces neglected lines of literary influence and networks of intellectual and political dialogue between Italian and Indian writers in the inter-war and post-war periods. The first chapter explores the contours of the ‘anti-colonial imagination’ underpinning the work of Italian Marxist Antonio Gramsci. Focusing particularly on his lesser-known and often un-translated pre-prison writings, it suggests that the critical terminology for which he has become best known in postcolonial studies emerges as part of his gradual elaboration of an anti-colonial position. The second chapter looks at the ways in which Ignazio Silone’s novel Fontamara represents Fascism as a form of internal colonialism, before moving on to think about the significance of its influence on Raja Rao’s Kanthapura and what the implications of this line of influence might be for our understanding of what defines postcolonial writing. The third chapter turns to the work of Carlo Levi, and argues that his lifelong commitment to exposing the internal colonization of the Italian South forms part of a broader anti-colonial commitment that carries him to India and brings him into dialogue with writers like Mulk Raj Anand. Finally, the fourth chapter charts the remarkably pervasive yet critically neglected textual relationship between Italo Calvino and Salman Rushdie, and argues that Rushdie’s postcolonial aesthetics emerge partly through his readings and re-workings of Calvino. Taken together, these four cases tell us much about how a certain trajectory of Italian anti-Fascist writing laboured towards what we might think of as forms of anti-colonial and postcolonial thought. Simultaneously, they invite us to ask questions about the unseen role that these writers have played in shaping our sense of what it means for writing to be ‘postcolonial’. iii iv Acknowledgements Anyone who has made it to the end of a project of this size will have debts to acknowledge. There can’t be many, however, who have as many fantastic people to thank as deeply and sincerely as I do. These few words can’t possibly express the full extent of my gratitude for what they have done for me over the last few years. First of all, I would like to thank the Arts and Humanities Research Council whose financial support made this project possible. I am also very grateful for the support provided by the AHRC’s Research Training Support Grant and the School of English Literature, Language and Linguistics in my writing-up year, without which I would not have made it to the finish line. The School of English generously provided me with help to attend conferences in the UK and abroad that helped me immensely in developing this work. They also sponsored my visit to the archives of the Fondazione Istituto Gramsci in Rome, which was absolutely vital for the thesis. I would like to thank all of the staff at the Fondazione Istituto Gramsci for their huge patience with my rusty Italian, my weak grasp of archive etiquette, and my endless requests for photocopying. This project started while I was still at the University of York, and I owe a huge debt to so many people there. So many of you made that time special and made me want to keep studying. A special mention goes to Ben Poore, for the conversation, shared outrage, and solidarity that he has continued to offer me throughout this time. I owe a particular debt to Anna Bernard and Ziad Elmarsafy: without both of you this project would never have come into being, and I would never have had the courage to do a PhD. I have been every bit as lucky at Newcastle, and I can’t imagine a better place to have spent these years. I’d like to thank all of the great staff who’ve helped and guided me through. I owe a special debt to Robbie, for his boundless enthusiasm, and spectacularly detailed feedback. I’d also like to thank all of the great students I've had the pleasure of teaching, who have always reminded me what it’s all really about. v Thanks to all of the denizens of the basement, who’ve given me such a great atmosphere to work in. Massive thanks to Claire, Sadek, Bea, Helen, Jon and all the other friends who have made my time here awesome. Cheers to Helen, for her herculean efforts in helping me format this thesis, and for not killing me during all the tabbing. Special thanks to my partner-in-crime Claire, the most patient and persistent friend I have: without her I’d have dropped out ages ago. I can’t begin to thank my supervisors, Neelam and Anne, for everything that they have done for me. Their endless patience, their constant encouragement, their staggering generosity with their time and energy, and their unwavering support have been simply beyond belief. I owe a special thanks to Neelam, without whom this project never would have come into being, and never would have been finished. I have been incredibly fortunate to have her as a supervisor, and even more so as a friend. Outside of the university there have been so many people responsible for getting me here. I’d like to thank Roseanna, for more than she knows; some debts never go away. A huge shout out goes to my Coquet Terrace peoples: Pickles, Boat, Poulet and Mak Tak. Thanks for all the good times, excellent raclettes, terrible films, painful planks, and kind deliveries of tea and food: it’s been pen. Cheers to Leonard, for keeping me sane and crunching biscuits. And thank you to Cat, for all of the support, understanding and warmth that got me through the final stretch. Finally, I’d like to thank my wonderful family for everything they’ve done to keep me on my feet and moving forward, from phone calls to food deliveries and care packages. Much love to you all! Thanks particularly to Mum and Kevin, for all of their incredible support over the last four years; your belief in me got me through. I owe huge thanks to Kevin for undertaking the mammoth task of proofreading the whole thing so late in the day, but I can’t think of anyone I’d rather have read my work. The greatest luck I’ve had in my life is the sheer quality of the people I’ve had in it. Friends, family, colleagues and mentors (and so many of you have been more than one of those things to me): I could not ask for more, and I couldn’t have done it without you. This one’s for you. vi vii viii Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................................................ iii Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................................................... v Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................................... 1 List of Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................................... 5 Introduction: Italy in the Postcolonial, The Postcolonial in Italy ................................................... 7 Chapter 1. The Anti-Colonial Gramsci: International Political Life ............................................ 24 Note on the Texts .............................................................................................................................. 24 1.1 Introduction: Gramsci’s Unique Anti-Colonialism ....................................................... 25 1.1.1 Southern Questions ............................................................................................................... 33 1.2 Anti-Colonial Positionings ..................................................................................................... 43 1.2.1 Killing (and Eating) a Chinese Mandarin: The Vertical Axis of Colonialism . 43 1.2.2 Italians and Chinese: New World Orders ..................................................................... 55 1.2.3 Mandarins, Caste, and the Intellectuals: the Horizontal Axis of Colonial Power ...................................................................................................................................................... 63 1.3 Gramsci’s Kipling: A Great and Terrible World ............................................................ 71 1.4 Conclusions: Anti-colonialisms and Anti-Fascisms in Theory and Practice .... 82 Chapter 2. ‘A Village Like So Many Others’: From Fontamara to Kanthapura ...................... 87 Note on the Texts .............................................................................................................................. 87 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 88 2.1.1 Lines of Comparison: ‘An Italy of the Asiatic’ ............................................................ 90 2.1.2 Ignazio Silone’s Fontamara as ‘World Literature’ ................................................... 98 2.1.3 ‘Colonial Regimes’ ..............................................................................................................