Inventing Futurism: The Art and Politics of Artificial Optimism by Christine Poggi

Abstract

MLR, 105.1, 2010 263 the sexAngelica likes, is itnot?Mac Carthy says so herself. Anglica's main concern, she claims, is to perfect the 'management of female sexuality (p. 117). More generally, readers who do not know Italian will regret the fact that there are no English translations to accompany the Italian quotations, and theymay by the end come to feel short-changed. At the beginning they are promised that, through a more sensitive and sophisticated exegesis' than feminist critics have provided so far (p. xiii), the work will deliver a reading of Orlando furioso which does not restrict itself to highlighting only one or the other ofAriosto's 'ideologia' and 'retorica' (contents' and 'form' in old-speak), but seeks, rather, to combine the two, through a discussion?as the author states again in the closing paragraph of the work?both of'what is said' and of'how it is said' (p. 162). It soon becomes clear, however, thatMac Carthy has a narrow understanding of 'retorica', concentrating almost exclusively, as she does, on dispositio. This is confirmed by the closing words of the book, which reveal that a shiftof emphasis has taken place in the course of thework. She now claims that she has focused 'not just on the subjects of the poem but on theway they relate to each other' (p. 162). Her 'rhetoric', in other words, is little more than a sum of 'ideological bits'. And the sum, unfortunately, is less than the total of itsparts. There are seven parts in all: 'Openings: Ariosto's Double-Edged Pen', 'Alcina's Island: Imitation and Innovation', 'Angelica: Poetry and Desire', 'Marfisa: The Anatomy ofGender', 'Women in Gestes, 'Olimpia: Moral Ambiguity in the Third Furioso\ 'Bradamante: TheMaking of a Renaissance Ideal'. The best are the chapters onMarfisa, Olimpia, and Bradamante. Taken together they show convincingly that Ariosto's pen is indeed 'double-edged' and that inhis hands 'the lines blur between damsels in distress and wicked women, victims and villains, and heroes and fools' (p. 133). That is undoubtedly the surest sign of Ariosto's greatness. Writing to entertain foolswho would be heroes (the Este ... us), he puts them on their guard: words are not yours tomonopolize! Words (thoughts) are free. University College Dublin Eric Haywood Inventing Futurism: The Art and Politics ofArtificial Optimism. By Christine Poggi. Princeton: Princeton University Press. 2009. 392 pp.; 24 colour illustrations; 131 halftones. $45; ?26.95. ISBN 978-0-691-13370-6. This volume, promoted by Princeton University Press with great vigour as a study 'unparalleled in scope', contains amiscellany of essays on Italian Futurism: seven, to be precise, addressing a variety of issues such as Marinetti's early career; city imagery inprimo futurismo; representations of the crowd; visual poetry; Boccioni's urban imagery; Balla's move to abstraction in 1912; eroticized technology and human-machine hybrids; Futurism and war; Futurist attitudes towards women; Futurism and fashion and body culture; dance, spirituality, and machine culture; aeropittura; Futurism as a response to the crisis of modernity Some of these chapters or subchapters have great merit; others, unfortunately, are tarnished by 264 Reviews severe flaws. Many of the errors of fact and judgement can be attributed to the author's attempt towrite about Futurism in an all-embracing manner, which in principle is a laudable intention, given that Futurism attempted to break down barriers and borders in all artistic fields. But for a profound and critical assessment of Futurism's historical achievements in, say, painting, music, theatre, or photo graphy one needs to possess considerable expertise in each of these fields. In the case of Poggi's book thismeans thatmany of the sections dedicated to aspects of themovement inwhich the author is an expert, i.e. art history, are excellent. Poggi is able to examine paintings in a detailed and analytical manner, often re vealing aspects of theworks under discussion that the untrained eye isunlikely to discover or appreciate in their full significance. However, many of her forays into the fields of literature or performance do not fall into this category. Rather, they are marred bymistakes, cliched statements, and misinterpretations which, inmy view, a commissioning editor or the publisher's anonymous referees should have pointed out...