Italia - A brief interpretative history

Some friends and I were discussing great cultures and the philosophical traditions each may have had. When we came around to Italy we found that Italy is not a place that invests too much time in philosophy. That is not to say it did not do so in the past. Italy has produced many great thinkers -Italy is home, after all, to the Renaissance and Ancient Rome.

No, Italy had a different path to follow. After the fall of Rome, around 476 ad, Italy's history is filled with nothing but war, invasions, disease, rape, pillaging and occupation. It was the prize possession of all invading armies from Germanic tribes like the Lombards and Ostrogoths to Holy Roman Empire under Charlemagne, to Napoleon and finally the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. Not to mention, to name a precious few, everything in between from the Spanish, Normans, Celts and Moors. Italy was constantly in the middle of foreign affairs and was key in helping to maintain various balance of power designs among the great powers of Europe. This sad reality is truly remarkable for such a glorious country. It, without a doubt, scarred the Italian psyche probably until this day.

It is important to point out that Italy was not the Italy of today. From the Roman Empire until 1871, Italy was organized into republican city-states run by autocratic aristocratic families (Sforza's in Milan and De Medici's in Florence etc.). The cities, Genoa, Venice, Pisa, Florence and so on were in a constant flux of war with one another. Ironically, without the benefit of consolidating into a nation-state, Italy became the world's single most influential society in many fields from art to exploration. Whatever Europe was up to, you were sure to find an Italian hand in the cookie jar. They were the mover and shakers behind the scenes.

In the "what-if?" category of history, it would be interesting to see what history may have been like if Italy was unified. Given its role (technology and funding) during the age of exploration, would Italian, for example, be the language of the America's?

In contemporary times, Italy is renowned for its perfection of 'la dolce vita.' So subtle in its mastery of it that it is often dismissed as over rated or simplistic. Therein lies, of course, the beauty of the secret.

However, there is another side of the Italian character. Behind all the smiles and sunshine exist a people with profound sorrow. There's a feeling among them that the world does not truly appreciate Italy. That the angels of misfortune seem to have chosen Italy as their destination. This is hard to take for a people that pour their blood, sweat and tears in their creations. They still find it perplexing, in all their parochialism, that many in the world do not learn their language often cited, both subjectively and objectively, as the most beautiful and romantic of all God's languages.

In the music of the nationalist Verdi, the patriots, lead by Garibaldi, of the Risorgimento found inspiration. A highly artistic yet conservative people were about to finally be freed and have a unified Italy. There was a Mazzinian sense that things were finally going to be all right from now on. Roughly after 2 500 years of splendid history, Italy was finally born in 1871. It was long overdue. Its fate was similar to Germany's as they were, ironically (since they were the foundations of modern Western Europe), the last of the great societies to consolidate. The monarchies of France, England and Spain (by that time almost inconsequential) all had a massive head start and benefited financially and prestigiously (with shame to some) in the age of exploration.

If Germany quickly proved to be a success story by asserting itself in world affairs thus becoming an immediate power, Italy, in all its ambiguities, was finding it most difficult to glue the country together. For such a relatively small country, Italy was fragmented (high-lighted by the Mezzogiorno dividing the wealthy and industrious north and the poor and agricultural south) almost to the point of shame. It has been a hard journey ever since then.

So life goes on. The practical Italians meet this unfulfilled experiment with pragmatism. They fully recognize that their institutions are not as efficient as those found in Northern Europe. They understand their place among European nations.

Part of Italy's charm is its chaotic yet surprisingly efficient way of life. It is filled with many contradictions just like human nature. They present to the world brilliant liberal art but remain parochial and conservative. They may seem to accept the bureaucratic mess and government corruption around them but deep down they yearn for honesty and organization. Despite the failures it still manages to be part of the G7. They always seem to come through when it counts most. No one can quite grasp the Italian mind sometimes. It's as if it is simultaneously Norman, Byzantine, Arab, Greek, German and all the other cultures that passed through its beautiful terrain.

Yet, yet through it all the country found time to progress and modernize like no ancient culture has done. Italy is a proud industrial (not to mention post-industrial) and artistic society trying to survive. They are filled with inner philosophies.

Perhaps this is what draws people to Italy. By some accounts, Italy has been the most visited nation in the world since the 14th century. Italy is a stage where all of humanities flaws, virtues and vices are the actors. Maybe Italy offers pieces of it tailor made for every visitor who comes.

Maybe this is why they keep coming- Italy is a mirror to everyone.