''Solaria'' was a modernist literary magazine published in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

, Italy, between 1926 and 1936. The title is a reference to the city of sun. The magazine is known for its significant influence on young Italian writers.

History and profile

''Solaria'' was established in Florence in 1926. The founders were Alessandro Bonsanti and Alberto Carocci. Its publisher was Edizioni di Solaria, and the magazine was published on a monthly basis. As of 1929 Giansiro Ferrata served as the co-editor of the magazine. Alessandro Bonsanti replaced him in the post in 1930 which he held until 1933. The major goal of ''Solaria'' was to Europeanize

Italian culture Italy is considered one of the birthplaces of Western civilization and a cultural superpower. Italian culture is the culture of the Italians, a Romance ethnic group, and is incredibly diverse spanning the entirety of the Italian peninsula ...

and to emphasize the contributions of Italian modernist writers such as

Svevo Aron Hector Schmitz (19 December 186113 September 1928), better known by the pseudonym Italo Svevo (), was an Italians, Italian writer, businessman, novelist, playwright, and short story writer. A close friend of Irish novelist and poet James Joy ...

and Federigo Tozzi to the European modernism. The magazine adopted a modernist approach. ''Solaria'' had an

anti-fascist Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...

stance. The contributors of the magazine were mostly the

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

writers. They included Alberto Carocci,

Eugenio Montale Eugenio Montale (; 12 October 1896 – 12 September 1981) was an Italian poet, prose writer, editor and translator, and recipient of the 1975 Nobel Prize in Literature. Life and works Early years Montale was born in Genoa. His family were che ...

Elio Vittorini Elio Vittorini (; 23 July 1908 – 12 February 1966) was an Italian writer and novelist. He was a contemporary of Cesare Pavese and an influential voice in the modernist school of novel writing. His best-known work is the anti-fascist novel '' Co ...

Carlo Emilio Gadda Carlo Emilio Gadda (; November 14, 1893 – May 21, 1973) was an Italian writer and poet. He belongs to the tradition of the language innovators, writers that played with the somewhat stiff standard pre-war Italian language, and added elements o ...

. and

Renato Poggioli Renato Poggioli (April 16, 1907 in Florence – May 3, 1963 in Crescent City), was an Italian academic specializing in comparative literature. After 1938, he lived in the United States. At the time of his death, he was the Curt Hugo Reisinger Pr ...

. The novel of Elio Vittorini, ''Il garofano rosso'', was first published in the magazine. The magazine also featured poems by young Italian artists, including

Sandro Penna Sandro Penna (June 12, 1906 – January 21, 1977) was an Italian poet. Biography Born in Perugia, Penna lived in Rome for most of his life. He never had a regular job, contributing to several newspapers and writing almost only poetry. His first ...

. It was harshly criticized by other Italian literary circles and magazines, including ''

Il Selvaggio ''Il Selvaggio'' (Italian: ''the Savage'' or ''the Wild One'') was a political and arts magazine that existed between 1924 and 1943. It was a media outlet of an intellectual group called Strapaese (Italian: Supervillage). History and profile ''I ...

'', '' Il Bargello'' and '' Il Frontespizio'', due to its frequent coverage of the work by

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

writers. After producing a total of forty-one volumes ''Solaria'' ceased publication in 1936. The final issue was dated 1934, although it was published in 1936. In fact, it was

censored Censorship is the suppression of speech, public communication, or other information. This may be done on the basis that such material is considered objectionable, harmful, sensitive, or "inconvenient". Censorship can be conducted by governments ...

by the fascist authorities partly due to the serialization of Elio Vittorini's novel, ''Il garofano rosso'', in the magazine.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Solaria 1926 establishments in Italy 1936 disestablishments in Italy Anti-fascism in Italy Banned magazines Censorship in Italy Defunct literary magazines published in Italy Italian-language magazines Magazines established in 1926 Magazines disestablished in 1936 Magazines published in Florence Modernism Monthly magazines published in Italy Poetry literary magazines