Tag Archives: Italian Poetry
Timeless Emigrants – Part 2 Posted by Serena on Dec 4, 2015
As promised in my last post, here is Part 2 of Edmondo De Amicis’ poem Gli Emigranti (The Emigrants). In the first half of the poem De Amicis describes the emotions of the emigrants as they board the ship which will carry them away into the unknown: the desperate men, women and children, clutching onto…
Timeless Emigrants – Part 1 Posted by Serena on Dec 2, 2015
I came across the poem Gli Emigranti (The Emigrants) by chance, and I was immediately struck by its timeless message. In a period when the news is flooded by images of thousands of migrants leaving their war torn countries to the apparent ‘safety’ of the west, we can forget that we Italians have also been…
A Fresh Summer’s Rain Posted by Serena on Aug 12, 2015
It’s raining! After weeks and weeks of unbearable heat, the rain has finally brought us a breath of new life. It’s like a sudden awakening of the senses that only a master of words such as Gabriele D’Annunzio can render in an authentic way. In his famous poem La Pioggia nel Pineto (The Rain in…
A Hot Summer’s Afternoon In Italy Posted by Serena on Jul 20, 2015
Today, as is our custom, we got up at six o’clock and, after a quick breakfast, set off for a walk in the early morning freshness. As we walked up the mountain road towards the picturesque village of Pracchiola, constantly surrounded by the strident screeching of cicadas, I gazed up at the intense blue cloudless…
La Festa della Liberazione Posted by Serena on Apr 27, 2015
On the 25th of April 1945, Torino and Milano, Northern Italy’s two biggest cities, were liberated from German occupation by Italian Partisans and the Allies forces. On the 28th of April Benito Mussolini was executed by the Partisans and by the 1st of May all of northern Italy had been liberated, thereby putting an end…
Son Tanto Brava Posted by Serena on Mar 5, 2015
Sunday the 8th of March will be La Festa della Donna (International Women’s Day), and I thought it would be nice to find a special poem for the occasion. Searching through my poetry books and the internet for something appropriate I came across a short poem written by Sibilla Aleramo between 1912 and 1920, and…
The Fourth of November Posted by Serena on Nov 4, 2014
Quattro Novembre segna fine della Prima Guerra Mondiale in Italia (The Fourth of November marks the anniversary of the end of the First World War in Italy). When I was a child today used to be a national holiday and patriotic celebration of the greatness of our armed forces. All the barracks were open to…