Pasolini after Dante

This book examines the significant impact of Dante's work on Pier Paolo Pasolini, particularly highlighting his unfinished piece, Pasolini after Dante.

In Pasolini after Dante, Emanuela Patti delves into the profound influence of Dante Alighieri on the works of Pier Paolo Pasolini, a prominent Italian filmmaker and poet of the 20th century. The book explores how Pasolini's unfinished work, La Divina Mimesis, serves as a testament to his ongoing dialogue with Dante, which began in the early 1950s. This relationship is underscored by the contributions of philologists Gianfranco Contini and Erich Auerbach, who helped shape Pasolini's understanding of 'represented reality' and positioned Dante as an essential literary and political figure for postwar Italian writers.

Patti highlights the emergence of 'Dantean realism' in Pasolini's prose and poetry, inspired by Contini's interpretations of Dante's plurilingualism. This concept evolved into 'figural realism' in Pasolini's cinematic works, reflecting Auerbach's ideas on Dante's figura and stylistic blending. The author meticulously traces the development of Pasolini's mimetic ideals, revealing how these influences informed his approach to representation and the complexities of Italian identity during a transformative period.

Through her analysis, Pasolini after Dante offers a fresh perspective on Pasolini's politics of representation, addressing themes such as the 'national-popular', the 'questione della lingua', and the debates surrounding neorealism in post-war Italy. Patti's work not only enriches our understanding of Pasolini's major literary and cinematic contributions but also positions him within the broader context of Italian cultural history.