Italo Svevo wrote at a period when the terms of literature itself were being argued over.
The record lists Italo Svevo as Italian writer (1861-1928).
Italo Svevo was born at Trieste in 1861. His recorded nationality is Italy.
The nineteenth century was the age of the serialised novel and mass literacy; writers reached audiences of a size never seen before.
He worked as writer, playwright and translator.
The writing is recorded in Italian.
His name is attached above all to modernist novel La coscienza di Zeno, which became a widely appreciated classic of Italian literature. Books outlive their reviews, and the ones that last are seldom the ones that sold best.
That the work was written from Italy matters: language, censorship and the reach of a publishing industry decide which books travel and which stay local.
Italo Svevo died in 1928, aged 67. The books remain, which is the only durable form a writing life takes.
