The volume of free verse titled Il porto sepolto, written by Giuseppe Ungaretti while serving in the trenches of the Northern Italian theater, marked a pivotal debut in 20th-century Italian literature. As a corporal during World War I, he transformed his harrowing experiences into a modernist style that helped define the experimental trend known as Hermeticism.
Early Development and Education
Born in 1888 in Alexandria, Egypt, Ungaretti was raised within a family from Lucca. After his father died in a Suez Canal construction accident, his mother managed a bakery while providing him with an education rooted in Roman Catholic tenets. He attended the Swiss School in Alexandria, where he engaged with Parnassian and Symbolist poetry. By 1912, he had relocated to Paris to attend lectures at the University of Paris and the Collège de France, studying under philosopher Henri Bergson and interacting with figures like Guillaume Apollinaire.
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Following the outbreak of World War I, Ungaretti supported the irredentist position and joined the infantry. His combat service profoundly influenced his artistic output, leading to the publication of Il porto sepolto in 1917 and his celebrated collection L'allegria. Following the 1918 armistice, he worked as a journalist for Il Popolo d'Italia and engaged with the Dadaist circle in Paris alongside Tristan Tzara. During this period, he expanded his literary repertoire, publishing the French-language volume La guerre in 1919.
Academic Career and Hermeticism
In 1920, Ungaretti married Jeanne Dupoix, with whom he had two children, Ninon and Antonietto. After settling in Rome, he became a proponent of Hermeticism, a style blending Symbolism and his own experimental techniques. His professional life involved significant academic work, including a tenure at the University of São Paulo and a final teaching position at the Sapienza University of Rome. He was a versatile intellectual, contributing as a translator, librettist, and essayist until his death in Milan in 1970.
Fast facts
- Born: 1888, Alexandria
- Died: 1970, Milan
- Military Rank: Corporal
- Education: University of Paris
- Major Award: Neustadt International Prize for Literature (1970)
- Primary Fields: Italian literature, poetry, journalism
- Religion: Catholicism
- Burial: Campo Verano
Questions readers ask
What was Giuseppe Ungaretti's role in World War I?
He served as a corporal in the Italian infantry, witnessing the realities of trench warfare, which provided the backdrop for his seminal poetry collections.
Where did he work as an academic?
He held teaching positions at the University of São Paulo and the Sapienza University of Rome.
Achievements
- Neustadt International Prize for Literature — 1970
