Summary
Highlights
Luigi Pirandello was born in 1867 in Agrigento to a wealthy family. His father managed sulfur mines, and his parents held anti-Bourbon sentiments. Pirandello studied literature in Palermo, Rome, and Bonn, earning his degree in 1891. He lived in Rome from 1892, publishing his first novel 'L'Esclusa' in 1893. His family life was difficult due to his wife's psychological instability, exacerbated by financial ruin in 1903 when his father's mines were destroyed.
To support his family, Pirandello wrote numerous short stories and published 'Il fu Mattia Pascal' in 1904. He also worked in cinema. Between 1908 and 1909, he published important essays 'L'Umorismo' and 'Arte e Scienza'. From 1910, he began working in theatre, and his plays from 1916-1918 significantly changed theatrical language. His son's capture during World War I aggravated his wife's condition, leading to her institutionalization. His plays gained widespread success from 1920, with 'Sei personaggi in cerca d'autore' (Six Characters in Search of an Author) becoming particularly famous in 1921.
In 1922, Pirandello left teaching to dedicate himself entirely to theatre. He directed the Art Theatre in Rome and had a platonic relationship with actress Marta Abba. He joined the Fascist party in 1924, though his adherence was ambiguous. In his later years, he oversaw the publication of 'Novelle per un anno' and 'Maschere Nude'. Pirandello died in 1936 from pneumonia while filming 'Il fu Mattia Pascal', leaving 'I giganti della montagna' unfinished.
Pirandello's worldview is characterized by vitalism, a critique of individuality, the trap of social life, rejection of society, and relativism. He believed life is a perpetual, flowing movement, but it is constrained by the 'masks' we wear in society, leading to a crisis of identity. His essay 'L'Umorismo' (1908) distinguishes between the 'comico' (comedy arising from the immediate perception of contradiction) and 'umorismo' (humor arising from reflection on said contradiction, leading to bitter laughter and deeper understanding). An example is the 'old woman with makeup'.
Pirandello is known for his plays and novellas, collected in 'Novelle per un anno'. 'Ciaula scopre la luna' (1912) is a notable novella with symbolical values, representing themes of darkness, light, and resurrection, leaning towards decadentism rather than verism. Other famous novellas include 'Il treno ha fischiato' and 'La carriola', which illustrate the conflict between life and forms. 'Il fu Mattia Pascal' (1904) is a pivotal novel featuring an anti-hero who attempts to escape a suffocating life by faking his death, only to discover the impossibility of living without a recognized identity. This highlights the central theme of identity and the 'life-form' concept.
'Uno, nessuno e centomila' (One, No One, and One Hundred Thousand) explores the disintegration of the self and the relativity of identity, triggered by the protagonist's realization of a physical imperfection. His attempts to dismantle the various 'forms' others perceive him as lead to a complete breakdown and eventual fusion with nature. Pirandello's theater, starting from 1910, revolutionized bourgeois naturalist theater by challenging verisimilitude and psychology, presenting a distorted, absurd world. Gramsci described his plays as 'hand grenades' that shattered conventional thinking.
Early plays like 'Il gioco delle parti' (The Rules of the Game) introduced his grotesque style, portraying cruel marital dynamics. 'Sei personaggi in cerca d'autore' (1921) marked a significant shift to 'theater within theater', where characters seeking an author interrupt a play rehearsal, exploring the impossibility of capturing reality in art. 'Enrico IV' is a tragedy about a man who, after an accident, believes he is the historical figure Henry IV, living a life of illusion. 'I giganti della montagna' (The Mountain Giants), unfinished, is Pirandello's spiritual testament, addressing the struggle of theatrical art in modern reality and the question of artistic survival versus financial support.