This book adds to this growing body of scholarship on the Italian
Resistance by analysing, for the first time, how the 'three wars' are
represented over the broad spectrum of Resistance culture from 1945 to
the present day. Furthermore, it makes this contribution to scholarship
by bridging the gap between historical and cultural analysis. Whereas
historians frequently use literary texts in their writings, they are
often flawed by an insufficiently nuanced understanding of what a
literary text is. Likewise, literary critics who have discussed writers
such as Calvino and Vittorini, or films such Paisà and La notte di San
Lorenzo, only refer in passing to the historical context in which these
works were produced. By fusing historical and cultural analysis, author
Philip Cooke makes a unique contribution to our understanding of a key
period of Italian history and culture.