This dissertation focuses on the refashioning of Veronas urban space and identity during the Fascist regime. Traditionally, Fascist-sponsored restoration projects were interpreted as top-down undertakings decided and directly controlled by central state authority. Only recently have studies begun to test this thesis and show the involvement of local forces in the reshaping of Fascist Italys urban spaces.
My research builds on this recent scholarship by showing the active role played by Veronas socio-political elites in the refashioning of the citys urban fabric. However, my study also extends the current literature on Fascist-sponsored restoration projects by discussing the contribution of international narratives to the debate surrounding the refashioning of Italys built heritage. In this study I explore the ways in which these narrativesparticularly those advanced by tourism and the Hollywood film industryinfluenced local and national socio-political groups, forcing them to renegotiate their project of appropriation of the citys historic heritage within a broader framework of international assumptions about Veronas famous history. Far from being a top-down undertaking, the reshaping of the citys urban space emerges as a complex process of mediation between distinct groups, with different interests at stake, each trying to capitalize on Veronas world-wide reputation to further its own agenda. While preservation groups insisted on the importance of maintaining and restoring the citys multiple historical layers, the local socio-political elite pressed for an idealalthough sometimes fictitious recreation of Veronas built heritage with the intent to foster tourism and support their myth of identity. The central government, on the other hand, fully supported local initiatives in order to build consensus for the regime as long as such projects could be reconciled with Fascisms agenda of nation and empire building. The study of the refashioning of Veronas architectural fabric shows that Mussolini appropriated the citys cultural tradition but left ample freedom of action to local officials and the urban bourgeoisie in their urban renewal efforts.
Ultimately, this project contributes to a deeper understanding of Fascisms relationship with the past and provides insight into the culturally constructed nature of urban spaces and identities.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PITT/oai:PITTETD:etd-12092010-021326 |
| Date | 31 January 2011 |
| Creators | D'Anniballe Williams, Maria |
| Contributors | Christopher Drew Armstrong, Kai K. Gutschow, Kirk Savage, Barbara McCloskey |
| Publisher | University of Pittsburgh |
| Source Sets | University of Pittsburgh |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | text |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Source | http://etd.library.pitt.edu/ETD/available/etd-12092010-021326/ |
| Rights | restricted, I hereby certify that, if appropriate, I have obtained and attached hereto a written permission statement from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis, dissertation, or project report, allowing distribution as specified below. I certify that the version I submitted is the same as that approved by my advisory committee. I hereby grant to University of Pittsburgh or its agents the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible, under the conditions specified below, my thesis, dissertation, or project report in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. I retain all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis, dissertation or project report. I also retain the right to use in future works (such as articles or books) all or part of this thesis, dissertation, or project report. |
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