The old, the new (and us who are in the middle)

CYCLE: Ancient Modern: A Journey into European Literatures
SPEAKER: Francesca Serra
DATE: Tuesday, October 21, 6:00 p.m.
LOCATION: Palazzo Massimo alle Terme, Largo di Villa Peretti 2

In the debate between the ancients and the moderns, there is no place for being in the middle. The very meaning of the debate would be lost. In reality, every literary text is a search for conciliation between old and new: if it were too old, it would be obsolete; if it were too new, it would be unreadable. Walking on the ridge between old and new can make you dizzy, for fear of sliding to one side or the other. But it can also make us see unexpected things. What is certain is that every time a generation changes its point of view, there is always someone who raises their finger to say: "I am the old and the new."

Francesca Serra is a professor of Italian literature and the dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Geneva. She has written: Casanova autobiografo (2004), Calvino (2006), Le brave ragazze non leggono romanzi (2011), La morte ci fa belle (2013), and La grande Blavatsky (2016). Between 2017 and 2021, she conceived and directed the "Atlante Calvino" project of the Swiss National Science Foundation.
 

Free admission subject to availability.
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