Marxists Literary Theory

Fontamara  by Ignazio Silone

Synopsis

One night, three people from Fontamara - a mother, father and son - tell an exiled writer about various things which had happened in their village. The writer decides to turn these into a book. The mother, father and son therefore become the narrators, though the majority of the book is narrated by the father. Cav. Pelino arrives in the village and tricks the cafoni to sign a petition which would deviate the watercourse away from Fontamara and therefore away from the fields in which they work. The Fontamaresi are initially reluctant but they do sign the blank pieces of paper he gives them. He places another sheet on the top of the pile which says The undersigned, in support of the above, supply their signatures spontaneously, voluntarily and with enthusiasm for cav. Pelino (^[14] p. 37).

On their way to the fields the men see workers deviating the watercourse. A boy delivers the news to the village and the women go to the regional capital city in order to protest. They don’t realize that under the new regime thesindaco (mayor) is now the podestà and are taken to the house of the Impresario (a wealthy businessman) where, after much deliberation and fruitless trips elsewhere to find him, they are once again deceived, because Don Circonstanza and the Impresario persuade them to accept a three-quarter/three-quarter split of the water. The Impresario has also taken the tratturo (flat land owned by the community which is used for migration of sheep). Berardo Viola wanted to emigrate to America but cannot due to new emigration laws. He had sold his land to don Circonstanza to fund his trip but now has no land, known as il cafone senza terra (the peasant without land) and is unemployed and, because of his pride, feels unfit to marry Elvira – a Madonna-like character whom he loves. (^[14] p. 102). Cav. Pelino informs the government that the Fontamaresi not cooperating (through ignorance) with the new Fascist regime and Innocenzo la Legge comes to impose a curfew, which will severely inhibit their work, and forbid talk of politics in public places. Berardo makes a speech against Innocenzo who is humiliated and who then spends the night with Marietta.

The cafoni are summoned to a meeting in Avezzano to discuss the matter of Fucino (an extremely fertile area of land), and are yet again deceived when instead of having a discussion, the land is taken from them and given to the rich (^[14] p. 130). Some of them miss the truck home and meet a man who takes them to a tavern and offers to help them with their uprising and bring them weapons but, whilst he is gone, the Solito Sconosciuto approaches them to warn them they are being set up. Back at Fontamara, trucks of Fascist soldiers arrive and gang rape the women of Fontamara whilst the men are working in the fields. When the men return the Fascists question them, asking Long Live who? but the Fontamaresi don't know what answer they are supposed to give. The attackers see Elvira at the bell tower, mistake her for the Madonna and flee. Berardo and Giuva find Elvira and Matala at the top of the bell tower. Berardo picks Elvira up in his arms, takes her home and spends the night with her. In the morning he is even more determined to marry her, and Giuva thinks the only way Berardo could earn enough money to buy some land is buy getting a job in town.

The Impresario buys the cafoni's wheat whilst it is still green for 120 lire a hundredweight, knowing that the prices are about to be increased under a new law to 170 lire and therefore makes a substantial profit which should have gone to the Fontamaresi. He also introduces wage reductions which reduce wages to 40% and 25% for land-betterment work. Don Circonstanza tricks them again, telling them that the water will be returned not after 50 years but after 10 lustri (5-year periods) (^[14] p. 181-2), as the ‘’cafoni’’ don’t know what a lustro is. The younger people of Fontamara want Berardo to rebel with them but he refuses. Teofilo, one of Berardo's young followers, hangs himself from the bell rope at the belltower. Berardo and the younger narrator go to Rome, looking for work. They enlist the help of lawyer Don Achille Pazienza, a guest at the Locanda del Buon Ladrone (The Good Thief's Inn) (^[14] p.200) who also tries to exploit them. Whilst they are in Rome they find out through a telegram that Elvira has died. They meet the Solito Sconosciuto once more and go to a café where they are set up by the police and arrested for having clandestine papers against the Fascist regime. Both the young narrator and Berardo are tortured in prison and Berardo sacrifices himself, pretending he is the Solito Sconosciuto in order for the rebellion to continue and so that people hear about what has happened in Fontamara. The Solito Sconosciuto publishes an article Long Live Berardo Viola which tells the story of Fontamara and he passes on printing equipment (the duplicating machine) to the ‘’Fontamaresi’’ so they can start their own local anti-Fascist newspaper, which they call Che fare? (What are we to do?) (see Lenin's work What Is To Be Done? or in Italian Che Fare?). The three narrators go to visit the wife's family in San Giuseppe to celebrate the son's release and distribute papers there. On their way home they hear gunshots, and a passerby informs them there's a war at Fontamara. Almost everyone has died those who could, fled. Those who could, escaped. They then cross the border with the help of the Solito Sconosciuto. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fontamara)

Criticism:

Fontamara based on the story is a fictitious village in the region of Abruzzo, Central Italy. It depicts the poor condition of the fontemarans who struggle to cultivate grapes on their small ownership which provides low income for the entire workforce, just to cultivate the lands of the town professionals. There is also a distinction of classes between the townsmen and the peasants from the countryside. It explicitly shows the oppression of poor, uneducated people of Fontamara whom was taken advantage by the professional townsmen plus under Fascism which really make their condition worst. Silone wrote a novel from the heart cause it shows his principles against the ill effects of fascism.