Italian Women at War: Sisters in Arms from the Unification to the Twentieth Century

ISBN-13: 9781611479539 / Angielski / Twarda / 2016 / 206 str.

Susan Amatangelo; Stefania Benini; Norma Bouchard

Opis

Italian Women at War consists of eight articles and an introduction on the topic of Italian women s participation in war and conflict throughout Italy s modern history. Part one of the book focuses on heroines who fought for Italy s Unification and on the anti-heroines or brigantesse, as well, who opposed such a momentous change. Part two considers exceptional individuals, such as Eva Kuhn Amendola, who combatted both with her body and her pen, but also collective female efforts during the world wars, whether military or civilian. In part three, where the context is twentieth-century society, the focus shifts to women engaged in less conventional conflicts. The weapons these women wield to protest a particular state of affairs and effect change range from the conventional, like Peppa La Cannoniera s cannon, to the metaphorical, like Letizia Battaglia s camera. Several of the essays in this volume discuss fictional heroines who appear in works of literature and film, though all are based on actual women and reference real historical contexts. The book seeks to further the efforts begun decades ago to recognize Italian women combatants, especially in light of the recent anniversary of the Unification in 2011 and global discussions regarding the role of women in the military. The aim of this study is not to glorify violence and war, but to celebrate the active role of Italian women in the evolution of their nation and to demystify the idea of the woman warrior, who has always been viewed either as an extraordinary, almost mythical creature or as an affront to the traditional feminine identity."