Verga’s “L’amante di Gramigna”: Outlaws and Disorder in Militarized Post-Unification Italy

Abstract

Susan Amatangelo’s chapter looks at one of the most celebrated authors of Italian literature, Giovanni Verga, whose works reveal the influence of Italian Unification and patriotic literature on the author. Early in his career, he portrays war in historical novels that are epic in scope, but quickly turns his attention to stories that are more current; increasingly, his portrayal of history and war become more impressionistic and “human.” Amatangelo focuses on the short story, “L’amante di Gramigna,” where she argues that Verga represents the chaos that reigned in Sicily in the early 1860s, when the newly formed armed forces attempted to suppress the brigands, many of whom had military backgrounds themselves. Amatangelo notices the profound impact of the military on Peppa, the story’s protagonist, as she ultimately transfers her devotion from Gramigna to the carabinieri who captured him, able to fulfill her need for excitement but from a “safe” place.