Touristic and Chauvinistic Perspectives on the Arctic in the Italian Popular Press Some cases of literary and artistic reception, from the fin-de-siècle to the Fascist era

In this paper, I will focus on non-scientific Italian perspectives on the Arctic at the beginning of the 20 th century. Based on selected journalistic travel writings and on children’s books and their pictorial and photographic illustrations, I will examine some illustrative instances of the Italian perception of the Great North during this era. More specifically, I will focus on the Duke of Abruzzi’s Polar Expedition of 1900 and Umberto Nobile’s expedition of 1928. These cases are of particular interest in terms of artistic and literary reception, popular imagery, and political implications 1 . In 1899, Ugo Ojetti—journalist, art critic and an influential shaper of public opinion in Italy during the first half of the 20 th


Margherita d'Ayala Valva
Touristic and Chauvinistic Perspectives on the Arctic in the Italian Popular Press Some cases of literary and artistic reception, from the fin-de-siècle to the Fascist era In this paper, I will focus on non-scientific Italian perspectives on the Arctic at the beginning of the 20 th century.Based on selected journalistic travel writings and on children's books and their pictorial and photographic illustrations, I will examine some illustrative instances of the Italian perception of the Great North during this era.More specifically, I will focus on the Duke of Abruzzi's Polar Expedition of 1900 and Umberto Nobile's expedition of 1928.These cases are of particular interest in terms of artistic and literary reception, popular imagery, and political implications 1 .
In 1899, Ugo Ojetti-journalist, art critic and an influential shaper of public opinion in Italy during the first half of the 20 th century-was sent to Norway by the Italian newspaper "Il Corriere della sera" to report on the preparations for the Duke of Abruzzi's upcoming polar expedition.However, instead of reporting on facts related to the expedition or about the materials required, Ojetti instead chose to take the opportunity to visit and report on some touristic sites in southern Norway and Sweden.This was the beginning of Ojetti's career as a journalist, and he was curious to explore other attractions which appealed more to his literary and artistic interests.He did not want to "bore" his Italian readers back home with endless news about the food, the equipment, and the scientific aims of the polar expedition.To him-and to most Italians-the Duke of Abruzzi, a young member of the reigning Savoia family, was already a national hero and this expedition was expected only to confirm this fact.It is now well known that the expedition would turn out to only have partial success.On this expedition, Umberto Cagni-a member of the Duke's team-succeeded in reaching the latitude 86° 34 I .However, even though the expedition was not entirely successful, it was richly documented with writings and pictures.In order to document their travels, the team brought one Dallmayer camera, two different types of Kodak photo cameras, and the materials necessary to develop the photos-as Fridtjof Nansen had already done before 1 .The Polar explorers from such expeditions would become very popular upon returning to Italy.For instance, Umberto Cagni, a hero from this expedition, was nominated minister in 1923.Francesco Overini, who died during the Duke of Abruzzi's Polar expedition, is celebrated in a monument in Venice.The monument represents him as a romantic hero, staring into the distance 2 .(fig. 1, 2) In order to better make use of his precious time in Norway, Ojetti takes the opportunity to make the acquaintance of the noted Norwegian playwright, Hendrik Ibsen and the 1903 Nobel laureate for literature, Bjørnsterne Bjørnson 3 .Much later, in his memoirs Cose viste, he will remember meeting Ibsen and his impressions of Norwegian people: «Calm, honest and silent people, fond of the 1 See L. A. DI SAVOIA-U.CAGNI, La Stella Polare nel Mare Artico, Milano, Effemme, 2004, p. 30 (first edition: Milano, Hoepli, 1902).The lack of success of the expedition did not diminish the fame of the hero, which even grew on the occasion of his second important (but, once more, unsuccessful) expedition of K2.Luigi Amedeo di Savoia, the Duke of Abruzzi, died in Somalia in 1933, after founding an agricultural villagecolony named after him. 2 See the inscription in Overini's monument: «A Francesco Overini dalla più ardita spedizione al polo artico atteso invano al ritorno Luigi di Savoia Duca degli Abruzzi che l'audace impresa ideò e con altri compì.Venezia.Qui è vanto e dolore il sacrificio di tanto figlio.MCMV». 3Bjørnson returns to his homeland after years of absence: he lives in Rome with his family, and Ojetti translates from English his drama, Over Aevne, Milan 1895.hostile and stormy environment where they live» 1 .Ojetti then visited Oslo, Oscarshalle, Holmenkollen, and Trondheim.In the long train journey from Trondheim to Uppsala, Ojetti described woodland landscapes «which would be a paradise for a Divisionist painter» 2 .In 1910, after a trip to Russia, Ojetti made arrangements so that he would end his trip in Finland.From there, he travelled to Sweden.In the the photo referring to this second travel, we see Ojetti in front of the National Museum in Stockholm with the architect Ferdinand Boberg.This is a typical Italian grand-tour style picture, taken with a significant work of art or a monument as opposed to a natural background.(fig.3) In 1911, Italian journalist and writer, Arturo Jahn Rusconi, reported on his steamboat travel to the North Cape.In his article for the journal "Emporium", he wrote of "a nature obeying new laws of harmony, which has strange affinities with some Japanese prints" 3 .One should note that the photographs in the article were taken by Rusconi himself and the photographs serve to confirm the view he already had of his subjects.For example, in a very evocative and picturesque way, he chooses to photograph the coast as a borderline demarcating the limits of the known world.Another exemplar of this phenomenon of self-confirmation is a portrait of a group of travellers in the light of the midnight sun.This photo owes much to Erik Werenskiold's well-known picture, En bondebegravelse (fig.4), which could be characterized as a sort of Nordic version of L'Enterrement à Ornan by Gustave Courbet.One reason this picture is very well-known is due to the image of Nordic religiousness compared to the French.
However, in addition to the relevant role played by some common places of the travel to the North, the natural terrain of the regions visited is not solely responsible for the forming of such aestheticizing (i.e. by means of images) and picturesque interpretations of a faraway land (e.g.landscapes seen as Divisionist paintings or Japanese prints).One must not forget that linguistic barriers between the Italian journalists and the people they met in their travels must have also played a role in the formation of such idealized and self-confirming interpretations of their experience.As a further example of this phenomenon of self-confirmation, Ojetti remarks in his notes on his travels to Russia and Finland that the inhabitants of the places he visit seem taken from Ilja Repin's paintings or from Tolstoj's novels.
In summary, the act of travelling itself appears to activate the travellers' expectations even before they have reached their destinations.For the Italian journalists discussed, we have seen how such expectations were rooted in their familiarity with particular works of art and literature and their intuitive impressions of the terrain.Likely largely due to linguistic barriers, such pre-conceptions went un-challenged during their travels, and their intuitive and "non-realistic" perspectives on the North were reflected in their writing, which in turn was received by the Italian public.
I will now analyse the role of the journal "Emporium" and other media in communicating back to the Italian public.As mentioned earlier, the Duke of Abruzzi's polar expedition generated an intense amount of media coverage.For example, the journal "Emporium" referred to his speech at the «Collegio Romano» and illustrated his entire expedition with many pictures1 (fig.5, 6).In general, the journal «Emporium» provides an exemplary case of a medium in which scientific and artistic discoveries are communicated to the public, especially from the perspective of the aestheticization of knowledge discussed above.In this journal, pictures have pre-eminence and artists are the ideal readers and protagonists of the pages.«Emporium» never intended to be more than an illustrated magazine of popular science-not an art journal, not a scientific paper.It is therefore incorrect to see this magazine related to well-known Art Nouveau journals such as «The Studio», or «Pan», or «Ver Sacrum»: the first model is the North-American Magazine, particularly the «Century Magazine» and «Harper's Magazine», collected by Ghisleri during his visit to the Chicago Exhibition of 1893.Another model could be that of the French and German magazines for families, consisting in news and curiosities about technique, science, art, fashion for the parents, and adventurous stories for children.Among these papers -called «Familien-und Unterhaltungszeitschriften», or «Familienblätter» in Germany and Magazines pittoresques in France-we can find the magazine «Vom Fels zum Meer», clearly quoted by Ghisleri 2 , even if his polemics against this kind of periodicals («letture di famiglia e varietà») is quite explicit.In fact, though, despite the programmatic «civic ideals» of his creators, what distinguishes «Emporium» from other family magazines is above all the quantity and quality of the pictures, obtained with innovative (for Italy) means of photo-printing: thus, «Emporium» places itself in a certain way between a popular magazine and a scientific journal.The interests of the promoters of «Emporium», Arcangelo Ghisleri and Paolo Gaffuri, meet on both a technical and a generically programmatic level (the point is to «popularize scientific culture» by means of the most innovative systems of graphic art) and do not imply-on the contrary, they always avoid-a militant criticism within contemporary culture 1 .GHISLERI, Nel XXV Natale dell''Emporium' (Ricordi e confidenze), in «Emporium», n. 301, January 1920, p. 13-27).A similar polemics can be read in the rough draft by Ghisleri and Gaffuri dated 1903 (conserved in the Ghisleri Archives in the Library of Cremona, quoted by G. MANGINI, Editoria e impegno civile: l'incontro tra Arcangelo Ghisleri e Paolo Gaffuri, in Editoria e impegno civile: l'incontro tra Arcangelo Ghisleri e Paolo Gaffuri, «Archivio Storico Bergamasco», 9, 1985, p. 74-76: appendix III): «Per una rivista senza rubriche di curiosità e di attualità locale, senza i consueti passatempi di famiglia, senza rebus né indovinelli a premio, senza novelline, senza musica, senza versi, senza neppure una pagina di moda?[…] Noi miriamo a costituire nei lettori un archivio di cognizioni utili, di documenti grafici, di cose belle e interessanti oggi, ma che ognuno di loro potrà rivedere e consultare domani, dopodomani, fra qualche anno ancora con diletto e con frutto, soprattutto con frutto» (p.75). 1 Programme-Manifesto, in «Emporium», vol.I, n. 1, January 1895: «Popolarizzare l'alta coltura, i risultati delle scienze, il fior fiore delle arti, non solamente dell'Italia, ma di tutto il mondo civile.[…] Lontana da polemiche e da personalità-tutte di proposito escluse-serena, rispettosa delle coscienze […] la nostra Rivista, battendo una strada tutta sua-sull'esempio di quei "Magazzini illustrati" che all'estero e segnatamente in Inghilterra e nel Nord-America, hanno ottenuto una sì grande e meritata diffusione-porterà a tutti indubbiamente delle utili cognizioni e offrirà alle famiglie, a tutti i ceti, a tutte le età un albo di letture ricreative, dovuto alle penne migliori e più illustri, e che sarà ingemmato dalle riproduzioni più squisite delle opere dei grandi artisti del One can refer to the relevant role played by the art critic Vittorio Pica, who wrote in the "Emporium" and informed the Italian public about the Scandinavian artists who were exhibiting at the Venice Biennale in the first decade of the century 1 .Some illustrative pages from the "Emporium" in the 1890s concerning travels to Norway and to the Spitzberg, show some typical attractions: Sami people and photographic reproductions or graphic representations of landscapes-both of which were much influenced by contemporaneous Norwegian painting 2 .Italians of passato, come dei più insigni del nostro tempo, italiani e stranieri […]».On the relationship between Ghisleri and Gaffuri, see G. MANGINI, Editoria e impegno civile: l'incontro tra Arcangelo Ghisleri e Paolo Gaffuri, in Editoria e impegno civile: l'incontro tra Arcangelo Ghisleri e Paolo Gaffuri, «Archivio Storico Bergamasco», 9, 1985, p. 11-38. 1 Pica wrote on Scandinavian schools for over twenty years, dedicating to them from 1897 to 1919 fifteen monographic articles in the survey «Artisti contemporanei», thirteen in the graphics survey «Attraverso gli albi e le cartelle» and in the exhibition reports.I'm still studying the role of «Emporium» in educating the eye of Italian artists and in shaping the opinion of the middle-class, through the typically fin-de-siècle multidisciplinary approach.Related to the role played by Scandinavian artists, is my paper Europe's periphery as a land of Primitives.The Scandinavians in the review «Emporium» and at the first Venice Biennali (1895-1911), to be published in Die Kunstgeschichte und die Herausforderung der Anthropologie, proceedings of the conference, München-Eichstätt, May 2007.This essay also reconstructs Ugo Ojetti's travels to Scandinavia by consulting his articles in the newspaper «Il Corriere della sera» and some photo-albums and notes in his archive conserved at the National Library in Florence.Finally, on the occasion of a conference on the review «Emporium», I examined particularly the case of the Swedish artist Carl Larsson, opposed to the Serbian sculptor Ivan Meštrović, then presented by Alexander Auf der Heyde as a complementary image of peoples (they represent two peoples often opposed: the peaceful Scandinavia, the bellicose Balkans).The proceedings of the conference Emporium.Parole e figure tra il 1895 e il 1964 (Pisa, Scuola Normale Superiore, May 2007) are to be published in 2008. 2 A. GHISLERI, Gita invernale sulle coste della Norvegia, in «Emporium», vol.III, January 1896, n. 1, p. 23-31; Una gita allo this time period had an idea of Scandinavia as a whole from the internationally-well-known Scandinavian paintings they had seen in Italy.Hence, they continued to see these lands and reproduce them, with this distorted lens.
Another example of this phenomenon can be taken from an important journal of the symbolist perspective, «Vita d'Arte».A 1908 article from this journal shows the places where the Swedish painter Anna Boberg lived and worked 1 (fig.7).One can also refer to her paintings exhibited in Venice and well-known to the Italian public, which were also presented in the article about her 2 (fig.8).The interest of the Italian public rested in this artistic and literary side of Nordic representations.Hence, we can now understand why Ojetti chose not to dwell on the details of the scientific exploration (e. g. mapping terrain and elevations, weather conditions and climate in a remote unexplored area) and instead described his meeting with Ibsen and his visit to Swedish and Norwegian museums as a grand-tour following the principal traces suggested to the tourist.Reciprocally, Ojetti's opinions were definitely influential in shaping the opinions of the general public in Italy.In Venice, near the monument of Francesco Overini, there is a herma celebrating the aeronaut Pier Luigi Penzo, who died after being one of the rescuers of the men of the red tent.Near the inscription is an eagle, sculpted with straight lines as the symbol of the aeronautic martyr.The expression of Penzo is highly concentrated, similar to that of his neighbour Francesco Overini (fig.10, 11).Some of the representations of Nobile's second expedition and of the events of the red tent are reviewed here in order to understand the way Italians represent this media event, a sort of epos new to them: the triumph over the Arctic or rather, the survival of it.
The film «The red tent», directed in 1969 by the Russian director Mikhail Kalatozov but produced in Italy, was set as a sort of «spaghetti western».The film featured strong characters and a hostile land testing the men in a sort of epic fight.Even the music for "The red tent" was composed by Ennio Morricone, who is known for his "sparse" soundtracks to many well-known films, including the Spaghetti western "The good, the bad, and the ugly."(fig.12).
Nowadays, the 'mythical' story of the red tent continues to raise the interest of the Italian public.Quark (an Italian popular science tv programme) some years ago reminded the Italian public about Nobile's expedition (Rai tre, January 2002) (fig.13).Additionally, the expedition has recently even been commemorated by commercial products.For example, one can refer to the "Red Tent" package set of the pen "Aurora" for the year 2007, commemorating 80 years since the event (fig.14).Another recent form of popularization of Nobile's expedition from the Italian point of view is a documentary-film by Giovanni Minoli which appeared in the tv-programme «Rai Educational» in January 2008.
These are only some indications of the importance these expeditions had and still have in the Italian popular imagery.But let us now return to the object of this paper: the literary and artistic reception of the North, seen from the South (which is being the subject of another paper of this conference, from the linguistic point of view).
A children's book published in 1934 plays the role of an exemplary connection between the first image of the North (more related to a fin-de-siècle world) and the Fascist era, so dramatically represented by Nobile's expedition.In fact, children's literature is the genre in which interest in the Arctic remains most constant.Since Jules Verne, children's literature has been, and still is, a good filter of scientific knowledge.In Italy, this genre is most notably represented by the novels of Emilio Salgari.For example, his Nel paese dei ghiacci (1896, In the land of the Ice) was very popular and was translated into many languages (See the beautiful cover of a German edition of 1912, designed by the artist Alberto Della Valle1 , fig.15).In 1901, Salgari writes about the Duke of Abruzzi's Polar expedition 2 , adding a new readers' context to the rich list concerning the media event (fig.16).
Two further examples of Italian children's books about the Arctic published in the 1920s and 30s are illustrative in demonstrating the relationship between this genre and Italian public perspective of the Arctic.The first, Nel regno della bianca morte, by the journalist and writer (follower of Emilio Salgari) Luigi Motta 3 , is the narration of the most important explorations to the North Pole.The second, Pinocchietto al Polo Nord, is a novel about the travel to the North Pole by Pinocchietto, the protagonist of a series of fantastic adventures by the writer Maria Chierichetti 1 .
As a further indication of the important role of children's literature in shaping public perspectives of the Arctic, note that in the national catalogue of public libraries, one will find that most of the books about Polar explorations are owned by school libraries.An immediate result of this kind of popularization of scientific knowledge can be seen in the 'imaginary geography' built up by Italian children who have read these books, in their way of interpreting the literature dedicated to them.(Note that likely they have now access also to other media-movies, television, art, mythology-Santa Claus etc.-which have also shaped their perspective).I myself have tried to challenge a class of primary school students on this question, asking them to draw a picture of their 'imagined Arctic', and to associate to their drawing some words and adjectives.What resulted, apart from an expectable series of Santa Clauses, was extremely interesting.One of the most fascinating drawings was that by a girl aged thirteen, Sofia, whose way of interpreting the Arctic was a light-blue and white aerial representation, identified by the adjectives Stillness, Silence, Emptiness (fig.17  Salgari (fig.18, 19, 20).It is the story of a Florentine shoemaker who bets with his drunkard friends not only he can surpass Umberto Cagni's goal of 86° 34′ but also he can reach the North Pole and bring it back to Florence as a souvenir.The 'epic' story of this travel-which in the end turns out to only be a dream-can have an ambivalent meaning.In a satirical way, the story announces fascist rhetoric about the permanent ire ultra (surpassing the limits) concept which is then paradoxically anchored to a municipal-chauvinistic horizon.However, children are the intended audience of the book, which is meant to be read as both an adventure story and as a comic novel.
It must be said that its author, Ugo Mioni, was a priest who used to write a catholic-pedagogical literature very popular in the first decades of the century.In his more than 450 books written from 1895 till 1935, his young readers are educated to the Christian and civic virtues of God, the homeland and the family.In a few years, such ideals will make Mioni's writing perfectly compatible with the fascist ideology.For example, in a pamphlet published in 1913, he preaches-in the form of a fictitious letter to a young student-bout the education of the children's character: «You should be armed of a great energy and say 'I want.I want!'This is the verb I like most.When a child says: I want!I'm sure he has character, he will go far This kind of exhortation can be heard from Mastro Spago's words: «Go ahead» I shouted «Go ahead!I have removed the word backwards from my dictionary, and every good Italian should imitate me» 2 .All this can easily be connected to a poem composed in 1912 by the decadent national poet Gabriele D'Annunzio and dedicated to the explorer Umberto Cagni: I try to imagine … the ruthless will that made your stare look like the edge of an ice-axe […] the sledges saved from the sudden cracks, the painful hand required for hard works […] the mouldy biscuit for lunch, the putrid water for your burning thirst; every poverty, every misery […] The white dams rose up and broke down […].And you said to yourself: "go ahead, further".The Ocean was an abyss of broken islands.And you said to yourself: "go ahead, further".The two shores disappeared immense and tumultuous.And you "go ahead, further! 1 However, Mioni's book cannot be read without a smile.There is a contrast between the exaggeration in the way the characters and the events are described and the terms of comparison, which don't exceed the provincial dimension of Florence.The first aspect-the most typical of children's literature-is somehow 'rabelaisien', in more means.Mastro Spago is a plump man, a sort of an always-hungry and thirsty Pantagruel, whose dreams, ambitions and actions are often excessive.The dog he has chosen as his travel companion is called 'Polo'--he is huge, with enormous legs and dreadful jaws.Polo never gets tired and fights like a hero against the bears.The gun Spago owns is a murderous weapon from the African campaign.The comic effect comes from the very tiny and provincial imagery of the hero Mastro Spago.He compares the huge dimensions of the Arctic to the great dome of the Florentine Cathedral-a very singular way of «dearcticizing» the Arctic, or «denorthernization» of North! 2 Further, he wishes to bring the North Pole to Florence 1 G. D'ANNUNZIO, Canzone a Umberto Cagni, in Merope, volume IV of the Laudi del cielo, del mare, della terra e degli eroi, Milano, Treves, 1912: «Penso […] la volontà spietata e senza voce che ti facea lo sguardo come il taglio della piccozza.[…] il maglio invisibile che schiacciava i blocchi enormi.[…] le slitte tratte fuori dalle crepe improvvise; la costretta man dolorosa ai ruvidi lavori.[…] la galletta muffita per panatica, all'ansante sete il sorso dell'acqua fetida, ogni penuria, ogni miseria.[…]Le dighe bianche s'alzavano, crollavano.[…].E tu dicevi a te: "Più oltre".L'Oceano era un bàratro di rotte isole.E tu dicevi a te: "Più oltre".Sparivano i due solchi in un tumulto raggiante informe immenso.E tu: "Più oltre!"...». 2 The concept of «denorthernization of North», in its physical transformation from wild to tourist site, is analyzed by D. CHARTIER, Towards a Grammar of the Idea of North: nordicity, winterity, in «Nordlit», n. 22, 2007, p. 35-47.That of the «Dearcticizing the Arctic», and conserve it in the Boboli Gardens, so that the travels to the Pole will be from now on much easier, and nobody will have to confront the horrific and uncomfortable weather of the Arctic… emerged from many papers of this conference, is an interesting key to read the Arctic from the outside.
The events of the two flights of the airships «Norge» and the «Italia» -flights which took place in the mid 1920's, well-known from the wide range of literature concerning the memoirs, polemics and Nobile's trials -are essential in understanding this context of Italian reception of Nordic sites and Polar expeditions.A lamp in alabaster representing the Discovery of the North Pole with the Norge (fig 9) documents the popularity of an expedition in which Italy was proudly represented by Umberto Nobile.The creator of the lamp was Donatello Gabbrielli (1884-1955), a sculptor from Naples (Nobile's birthcity) who was active during the first half of the century.
).A final example of children's literature concerning the Arctic is the novel Mastro Spago al Polo Nord (Master String travelling to the North Pole), first published in 1909 by Ugo Mioni, a catholic emulator of