The History of Sexuality in Italy (1860–1945)

Abstract

The effort to map the history of sexuality in modern Italy presents a number of difficulties: the field itself is ill-defined and isolated references to the history of sexuality can be found in works belonging to various disciplines. In the past, moreover, the study of sexuality was often prescriptive and moral judgements strongly influenced descriptions and analyses. In this chapter I will first discuss changing definitions of sexuality and their importance for historiography, and then give a rapid overview of the studies of sexuality produced since Italian unification and their use of history. In the third and last part, I will discuss the characteristics of the Italian historiography of sexuality regarding the period 1860–1945, paying attention to both strengths and weaknesses.