Italy · 200th birthday of Carlo Collodi (Pinocchio)

Carlo Collodi was actually named Carlo Lorenzini. His later pen name refers to Collodi, a place in Tuscany from which his mother came. Lorenzini was born in Florence in 1826 and grew up in modest economic circumstances. He attended church schools, but decided against an ecclesiastical career and worked, among other things, as a bookseller, journalist, translator and theatre critic.

His professional development was closely linked to the Risorgimento, the movement for the political unification of Italy. Lorenzini took part as a volunteer in the Italian wars of independence and published political and satirical texts. In 1848, he founded the magazine “Il Lampione”, which was banned by the censors after the suppression of revolutionary movements. Following the establishment of the Italian nation state, he increasingly concerned himself with questions of education and a common Italian language.

Collodi initially translated French fairy tales into Italian. He then wrote schoolbooks and stories for children. His best-known character first appeared in instalments from 1881 under the title “La storia di un burattino” in a children’s newspaper. A revised book version followed in 1883. The story combines elements of folk tale and comedy with the social conditions of Italy at the time. Poverty, hunger, child labour, school attendance and the desire for social advancement form the backdrop to the fantastic plot.

At first, the wooden figure is headstrong, gullible and repeatedly subjected to deception. Its transformation into a human is linked to learning, assuming responsibility and consideration for others. In this way, the story engages with the educational debates of the young Italian state without being limited to a simple moral tale.

The anniversary occasion gave Italy the opportunity to commemorate an author whose work continues to live on far beyond literature in theatre, film, illustration and everyday language. At the same time, the motif points to the period in which a common national culture emerged following Italian unification.