Real or reality? Comparing Italian Realisms (Geda, Catozzella, Janeczeck)

Abstract

The study will propose a comparative analysis between the narrative trends of Letteratura italiana circostante as described by Simonetti in his 2018 eponymous volume, and those of Italian translingual literature. The aim is to reflect on the ways in which Italian literature gives voice to the foreign gaze, exploring the boundaries between fiction and non-fiction, and therefore the close relationship with reality or the illusion of reality. Three case studies will be used: Fabio Geda, Nel mare ci sono i coccodrilli; Giuseppe Catozzella, Non dirmi che hai paura; and La ragazza con la Leica by Helena Janeczek. The goal is to analyze, case by case, how the authors narratively construct the «effect of reality», whether and through which choices these narratives can be defined as transcultural, and how the transcultural approach should be understood in each of the novels.