Echoes of the Lost: poets of the periphery

The grand tapestry of world literature is rich with authors who have immortalized sprawling cities and vast nations in their verse. From the romantic streets of Paris to the towering skylines of New York, these urban landscapes have provided endless inspiration, their bustling inhabitants and hidden secrets ripe for poetic exploration. Yet, a different breed of writer has chosen to turn their gaze away from the monumental, focusing instead on the subtle rhythms of small-town life, the quietude of the countryside, and a detached, yet profoundly universal, perspective. These are the poets who find beauty in simplicity, believing, as Franco Arminio eloquently puts it, «Man should build nothing; we are here in the world, we are here, and nothing more can be said; we are in passing time, there is nothing to resolve, no destination to reach.»

Franco Arminio, a contemporary luminary and self-styled “paesologist,” has dedicated his life’s work to capturing the essence of Italy’s dwindling rural towns. His poetry and prose are not merely nostalgic musings on a fading way of life; they are calls to action, urging a revival of these forgotten places. In an era marked by relentless urban migration, Arminio’s reflections on provincial life and its inhabitants resonate deeply. He observes, with a touch of melancholy, that even those who leave their hometowns remain tethered to it, their eventual return a bittersweet encounter with «the desolation of misery, now the misery of desolation.» Those who remain, he depicts as «insects caught in a web, some resigned to their fate, others still struggling to escape.» This imagery of entrapment and inertia transforms the village into a living artwork, a timeless landscape untouched by the chaos of modern society.

To delve deeper into this poetic exploration of place, I spoke with Paola Radici Colace, a renowned classical philologist and honorary president of the International Writers’ Center of Calabria.

The Village as Muse: Arminio’s Poetic Core

«For Franco Arminio,» Colace explained, «birthplace is not merely a biographical detail; it is the wellspring of his poetic expression and his intellectual activism. At the end of his talks, he encourages his audience to visit a village smaller than their own, to wander without purpose, because, as he says, ‘villages must first be observed, visited with passion. Traverse them and truly see them. As long as there are those who look, their depopulation will be averted.’ He never believed in the ‘death of villages,’ seeing them instead as places of transformation, not failed cities, but unique realms of discovery. Arminio writes to offer these territories a chance, to turn wounds into opportunities. His Irpinian village of Bisaccia shapes his poetic style, a blend of emotional verse and sociological prose, driven by an intellectual’s quest for truth.»

Sciascia’s Sicilian Tapestry: Place as Identity

«Leonardo Sciascia, born in Racalmuto, Sicily, also found his village to be a defining force,» Colace continued. «It was the launchpad for his career as a writer and intellectual, shaping his identity without idealization. Racalmuto permeates his work, a symbol of authentic Sicilian life, a metaphor for every origin. He remained there, his work rooted in its soil, seeking in its injustices a path to freedom and justice. In his 1952 poem ‘Sicily, its Heart,’ he writes of capturing the land ‘within the still eye of the ox,’ a place of ‘bitter mirror of pain,’ where ‘silence is voracious.’ For Sciascia, this land was the heart of Sicily, a geographical and sociological core that defined his literary voice.»

Poets as Politicians: Arminio and Sciascia’s Activism

Despite their differences, both Arminio and Sciascia shared a desire to engage with politics. Sciascia’s political career, from regional council to parliament, reflected the era of the militant intellectual. Arminio’s activism is more informal, utilizing social media and public platforms, like his video-letter to President Mattarella, to advocate for a «Republic founded on respect for pain,» a nation of generosity and kindness. «The true weapons for Italy in the third millennium are generosity and kindness,» he declared, echoing Sciascia’s commitment to social justice.

The Search for Truth and Justice: Poetic Activism

«For both poets,» Colace noted, «poetry and politics are intertwined. Arminio believes that ‘poetry becomes a powerful re-activator of the community,’ while Sciascia used his writing to address socio-cultural issues. They both sought to bridge the gap between literature and communication, to ‘resuscitate the cracks, the silences,’ that modern society overlooks. They aimed to reach all audiences, to make their voices heard across all wavelengths.»

Language as a Tool for Revelation

«Arminio and Sciascia imbued language with the power to reveal societal truths,» Colace explained. «Arminio laments the loss of genuine communication in a world of ‘slipping words,’ yearning for ‘the language of those who tremble for love or fear.’ Sciascia, like Arminio, used literature as a means to understand and change society, to challenge its direction with honesty and integrity. Their works transform literature from artifice to a tool of truth.»

In their hands, the village, once a symbol of neglect, becomes a focal point for societal transformation. Yet, both poets grappled with the challenge of language, navigating the complexities of modern speech and the layers of historical dialect. Their exploration of place became an exploration of language, a journey beneath the surface to uncover the essence of our origins.

_{Original article by Alessia Malcaus, elaborated with the help of AI}