Le guerre mondiali. Dalla tragedia al mito dei caduti

This book, one of the best and most insightful I have read in a long time, rests at a cross-section between art, culture, sociology, and memory. At 225 pages, it is both extremely short, and yet scholarly, well-argued, timely, and convincing. Does the sudden emergence of trench warfare in any way tra Leggi tutto

Bellissimo testo, che enuclea quella che l'evoluzione del pensiero della dimensione mitica all'interno dell'esperienza bellica. Un'evoluzione caratterizzata da una continua esaltazione della figura del soldato-cittadino, dell'uomo virile, maschio, eroico, del soldato schietto e onesto. Una figura ch Leggi tutto

L'incontro con la morte di massa nelle trincee, il fenomeno dei volontari di guerra e la costruzione del mito dell'esperienza di guerra. Un saggio che è riuscito a rendere affascinante ai miei occhi un tema controverso come quello della guerra.

Oh, it was fine. It would have been a very useful book had I actually written my thesis on the politics of postwar memorialization and monument building in the two Germanys. Learned a few new things, and Mosse has a fine (if not a bit convoluted) research question he is trying to interrogate, but ov Leggi tutto

This is a solid but relatively minor work from one of the great historians of the 20th century- and for my money, the greatest intellectual historian, though there's stiff competition. Wouldn't that be a fun radio show, like those sports radio shows where they argue who was the best shortstop based

What a stinker! Dull, dull, dull-- academic droning on a topic of great interest to me, I could barely keep my eyes open to read it. Two blatant errors in it also led me to think the author doesn't know his caboose from his elbow when it comes to WWI-- he refers to a photograph of what is clearly an Leggi tutto