THE RAPE OF INNOCENCE: HISTORY AND MYTH IN THE WORK OF PIER PAOLO PASOLINI, 1958-1966 (FILM, LITERATURE, ITALIAN)

This work examines selected theoretical writings, novels, and films produced by Pier Paolo Pasolini during the years 1958-1966. It focuses on his transition from poet and novelist to film theoretician and filmmaker, and is divided into six chapters. Chapter One is an analysis of significant theoretical work, some of which is still unpublished in English. Chapter Two is a consideration of the novels Ragazzi di Vita and Una Vita Violenta. Chapters Three and Four include a discussion of all feature films made by Pasolini in the years 1958-1966 as well as most of the non-commercial and rarely seen documentaries and short films of that period. These chapters emphasize the political and social dimensions of Pasolini's work as well as its poetic aspects. Chapter Five is an examination of the structure of the narrative in both literature and film, a discussion begun in the preceding chapters. The last chapter looks at Pasolini's "world view" and attempts to integrate the various elements of his creative output.The problem under consideration is Pasolini's formulation of a "cinema of poetry" and its relationship to the ideological argument in his work, both literary and filmic. The methodology is cultural-historical and includes a consideration of poetry, prose, theoretical writings and films of the years 1958-1966. This study shows that it is impossible to abstract Pasolini's literary and film production from its social context. The films are seen as an extension of the social critique begun with the novels and offer both a poetic discourse and a harsh criticism of Italian society in the sixties. In reaching for a new "language", Pasolini found an innocence and strength lacking for him in a highly technological culture, and he created a series of personal myths which both transcended and attacked recent Italian history.