Transformations and Mutations: The Birth of Italo Calvino's Varianti
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2017
Journal / Book Title
Italica
Abstract
This article problematizes Calvino's broad characterization of the "Italian" fiaba, as well as his claim that the collection provides examples of original, regional folktales. As Walter Benjamin observes in his essay, "The Task of the Translator," "Translation is a mode. To comprehend it as a mode one must go back to the original, for that contains the law governing the translation: its translatability" (Benjamin 70). To this end, I compare Calvino's variants with his sources to show their shared characteristics, as well as the liberties that Calvino took in rewriting them. As a renowned literary inventor, Calvino was accustomed to producing original work, and not simply to reproducing the tales of others. I suggest that his attraction to and passion for creation drove him not only to translate and collect Italian folktales, but also to reinvent them.
MSU Digital Commons Citation
Miele, Gina M., "Transformations and Mutations: The Birth of Italo Calvino's Varianti" (2017). Department of World Languages and Cultures Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works. 103.
https://digitalcommons.montclair.edu/modernlang-literatures-facpubs/103
Published Citation
Miele, Gina M. “Transformations and Mutations: The Birth of Italo Calvino’s ‘Varianti.’” Italica, vol. 94, no. 1, 2017, pp. 64–81.
