Schizophrenic Geographies: Intertext and Postmodern Space in the Work of Pier Vittorio Tondelli - Troubador Italian Studies (Paperback)

This book analyses Tondelli's works by focusing on the elements of 'incrocio' that can be identified in his books. It is an exploration of how they are either oriented towards the future according to a postmodern and post-national perspective or turned towards the past, towards the author's rural and provincial background. This initial intuition is developed by looking in detail at the different spatial dimensions in Tondelli's work that is thus placed in a broader perspective that goes beyond Italy and takes into account the strong intercultural and intertextual dimension of his literary production - an aspect that has not yet been adequately investigated. Some critics have underlined the international aspect of Tondelli's works, but a close analysis of the relations he established with his models has not been attempted so far. The analysis of his intellectual and physical mobility is central in creating a coherent web of connections that are able to explain the writer's relations with his models - which are not only writers from the literary canon, but also elements of popular culture such as films and music. A close reading of Tondelli's texts is crucial in order to achieve this aim. From a theoretical perspective the book is supported by the use of the concept of intertextuality and by key elements of theories of the postmodern - including the end of grand narratives and the collapse of the distinction between high and low culture-which are outlined at the beginning of the book and then applied throughout its chapters.