Sguardi novecenteschi sul mito di Oreste
abstract
This paper examines the reception of Orestes’ myth in twentieth-century Italian literature. The engagement in restaging ancient drama gives rise to a lot of rewritings in prose-fiction, poetry and, mainly, in theatre. Between 1900 and 1930, authors reflect on the myth’s cultural, philosophical, and autobiographical implications. World War II marks a turn in theatrical productions and the representations of Orestes’ family are characterized by a new attention to political events, with a focus on the modern nature of the history of the Atreids’ public power. After 1968, Orestes’ myth continues to attract an enormous range of interpretations. These new contemporary readings offer different solutions: thus, modern thought reveals its deep link to this myth in its richness of ever-present implications.
Keywords: Poetry and theatre • Atreids • Rewritings • Myth • 20th century