Call for papers/abstracts by Myriam Mereu
Fata Morgana, 2020
Interviewed by documentarian Errol Morris, Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary
of Defence under George W. ... more Interviewed by documentarian Errol Morris, Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary
of Defence under George W. Bush (2001-2006), could flaunt one of his most powerful and efficient weapons: oratory. Since the beginning of his political career, in the early 60s, Rumsfeld produced an extensive number of memos, also known as snowflakes. These are confidential notes addressed to the US presidents and their personnel which have been lately unclassified and are currently accessible on Rumsfeld’s online archive. Through the mix and juxtaposition of known and unknown facts, The Unknown Known (2013) condenses thirty-three hours of interviews with Rumsfeld alternated with archive material, audio-visual footage and excerpts of memos read by the very voice of the protagonist. Regarded as a wise, astute man and skilled orator, Rumsfeld tries to seduce his audience by means of captivating words chosen from his vast lexical repertoire. This essay analyses Rumsfeld’s voice as a narrative device and the pragmatic role of language as a tool of political power, by observing the linguistic features, the concepts and metaphors underlying the discourses of one of the main architects of the military invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Schermi. Storie e culture dei cinema e dei media in Italia, 2019
Call for papers for the forthcoming special issue of the journal "Schermi" (no. 6): Phenomena Gen... more Call for papers for the forthcoming special issue of the journal "Schermi" (no. 6): Phenomena Generation: Phenomena Generations: Narratives, Issues, Methodologies, edited by Giancarlo Grossi and Myriam Mereu.
Submission deadline for proposals (300 words, in Italian or English, and accompanied by an essential bibliography): 10th March 2019.
La narrativa sarda è visceralmente legata alla tradizione orale, da sempre veicolo privilegiato d... more La narrativa sarda è visceralmente legata alla tradizione orale, da sempre veicolo privilegiato di trasmissione del sapere e delle storie in una società prevalentemente agropastorale. L'oralità e la scrittura si nutrono della Storia per restituirla alla collettività sotto forma di epos, miti e leggende che in ogni epoca hanno dato vita a creature fantastiche e trasfigurazioni oniriche della realtà. Sebbene il fantastico non sia un elemento ricorrente nella letteratura sarda moderna e contemporanea, non mancano le apparizioni di spiriti, diavoli e fate nelle leggende di Grazia Deledda; janas nelle fiabe di Gino Bottiglioni; pietre dalle quali scaturiscono streghe e diavoli (Copez e Oppes); strias e cogas che si materializzano nei racconti di Sergio Atzeni; accabadoras che danno la buona morte (Murgia, Murineddu). Si pensi anche all'accoglienza favorevole della saga Iskìda della terra di Nurak, trilogia fantasy di Andrea Atzori. Anche il cinema sardo contemporaneo è divenuto un canale fecondo di divulgazione delle storie e delle leggende della tradizione popolare, attraverso la rievocazione di creature immaginarie quali surbiles (Giovanni Columbu), panas (Marco Antonio Pani), cogas (Michela Anedda) e altre figure leggendarie in bilico tra Storia e fantasy (Nuraghes di Mauro Aragoni). La presente sessione intende accogliere contributi che riflettano sul ruolo della fantasia nella costruzione dell'immagine letteraria e cinematografica della Sardegna, attraverso il ricorso a modalità discorsive, semiotiche e narrative che rafforzino o mettano in discussione le rappresentazioni dell'Isola, stereotipate o meno. Saranno altresì apprezzati i contributi che affrontino il tema proposto dalla prospettiva linguistica, con particolare attenzione al plurilinguismo e alla componente dialettale/regionale. Gli interessati possono inviare entro il 15 febbraio 2018 un abstract di max. 200 parole accompagnato da una breve nota
Papers by Myriam Mereu
1997 è una data storica per il “nuovo cinema sardo”, ricca stagione cinematografica inaugurata da... more 1997 è una data storica per il “nuovo cinema sardo”, ricca stagione cinematografica inaugurata dall'uscita nelle sale italiane del film di Gianfranco Cabiddu, Il figlio di Bakunìn. La pellicola, tratta dall'onomonimo romanzo di Sergio Atzeni del 1991, venne salutata dai critici come “lo spartiacque del nuovo cinema sardo”, e in effetti proponeva temi e immagini inediti nel panorama cinematografico isolano, caratterizzato fino a quel momento dalla rappresentazione del mondo agropastorale e banditesco. Ma il film di Cabiddu è un'opera interessante anche sotto il profilo linguistico, perché offre l'occasione per riflettere sull'oralità e la coralità della narrazione, tratti distintivi e assi portanti del romanzo di Atzeni. Quindici anni dopo, nel 2012, Salvatore Mereu presenta alla Mostra del cinema di Venezia, nella sezione “Orizzonti”, il suo ultimo lungometraggio, Bellas mariposas (liberamente ispirato al racconto di Sergio Atzeni del 1996). Protagoniste sono due ragazzine - Sara Podda e Maya Mulas - coetanee di Cate Frau e Luna Cotzas, residenti nel quartiere di Santa Lamenera, all'estrema periferia di Kasteddu. Un attento e accurato lavoro sulla lingua e sui luoghi ha permesso a Mereu di calare il suo racconto nella Cagliari contemporanea, il cui cangiante cromatismo linguistico si ritrova nel parlato della due adolescenti e degli altri personaggi della storia (il padre e la madre di Cate, Tonio, Gigi Nioi, la signora Sias, ecc.). Attraverso l'analisi del parlato filmico delle due opere atzeniane, si metteranno in luce le affinità e le divergenze rispetto ai testi di partenza, i tratti ricreati ex novo in fase di sceneggiatura e messa in scena, e infine si osserveranno gli elementi ascrivibili alla lingua realmente parlata in Sardegna e in particolare a Cagliari.
Island Studies Journal, 2021
The establishment of Island Studies within the academe and the introduction of concepts such as '... more The establishment of Island Studies within the academe and the introduction of concepts such as 'islandness' and 'islandscape' have accompanied a general rethinking of the concept of insularity which encompasses the reflection over a cinematic representation of islands and islanders. The use of islands as cinematic landscapes and settings has reinforced cultural, mythical, and identity stereotypes associated with the island imagery built-up in literature, as well as the construction of the islander as a character exhibiting specific behavioural features. The film Cainà. L'isola e il continente (Gennaro Righelli, 1922) is emblematic insofar as it is the first feature film shot in Sardinia and its character is not just a symbol of feminine rebellion against a patriarchal society, but it also serves as an allegory of an unspoiled island, such as it was considered and depicted at that time. As islanders ourselves, we have wondered to what extent Cainà adheres to the stereotypes of islandness and insularity conventionally ascribed to islands and, in this specific case, to Sardinia. Our paper aims to examine the genesis of the Sardinian insular imagination through the lens of the cinematic construction of 'islanderness' and 'islanderscope', an assortment of agency representing islanders-and islands-on screen.
Island Studies Journal, 2021
The establishment of Island Studies within the academe and the introduction of
concepts such as ‘... more The establishment of Island Studies within the academe and the introduction of
concepts such as ‘islandness’ and ‘islandscape’ have accompanied a general rethinking of the concept of insularity which encompasses the reflection over a cinematic representation of islands and islanders. The use of islands as cinematic landscapes and settings has reinforced cultural, mythical, and identity stereotypes associated with the island imagery built-up in literature, as well as the construction of the islander as a character exhibiting specific behavioural features. The film Cainà. L’isola e il continente (Gennaro Righelli, 1922) is emblematic insofar as it is the first feature film shot in Sardinia and its character is not just a symbol of feminine rebellion against a patriarchal society, but it also serves as an allegory of an unspoiled island, such as it was considered and depicted at that time. As islanders ourselves, we have wondered to what extent Cainà adheres to the stereotypes of islandness and insularity
conventionally ascribed to islands and, in this specific case, to Sardinia. Our paper aims to examine the genesis of the Sardinian insular imagination through the lens of the cinematic construction of ‘islanderness’ and ‘islanderscope’, an assortment of agency representing islanders — and islands — on screen.
Know the sea to live the sea / Conoscere il mare per vivere il mare, 2019
What is the role assigned to the sea, wherever present, in the contemporary films set in Sardinia... more What is the role assigned to the sea, wherever present, in the contemporary films set in Sardinia? Although the sea is an essential component of Sardinian geography and landscape and has played a central role in determining the development of the island, local directors and filmmakers have a complex and problematic relationship with the marine environment. This paper aims at analysing the depiction of the seascape in the documentaries, full-length and short feature films made in Sardinia over the last thirty years, which will be examined in relation to the presence of the sea, considered as a social, economic and cultural space, but mainly as a film place.
Fata Morgana, 2020
Interviewed by documentarian Errol Morris, Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary
of Defence under George W. ... more Interviewed by documentarian Errol Morris, Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary
of Defence under George W. Bush (2001-2006), could flaunt one of his most powerful and efficient weapons: oratory. Since the beginning of his political career, in the early 60s, Rumsfeld produced an extensive number of memos, also known as snowflakes. These are confidential notes addressed to the US presidents and their personnel which have been lately unclassified and are currently accessible on Rumsfeld’s online archive. Through the mix and juxtaposition of known and unknown facts, The Unknown Known (2013) condenses thirty-three hours of interviews with Rumsfeld alternated with archive material, audio-visual footage and excerpts of memos read by the very voice of the protagonist. Regarded as a wise, astute man and skilled orator, Rumsfeld tries to seduce his audience by means of captivating words chosen from his vast lexical repertoire. This essay analyses Rumsfeld’s voice as a narrative device and the pragmatic role of language as a tool of political power, by observing the linguistic features, the concepts and metaphors underlying the discourses of one of the main architects of the military invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq.
CoSMo. Comparative Studies in Modernism, 2020
According to figures from the latest demographic statistics, there are more than 55.000 foreign c... more According to figures from the latest demographic statistics, there are more than 55.000 foreign citizens in Sardinia (3,4% of the total resident population), and this number is expected to grow over the next few years. As an island exposed to frequent social and commercial exchanges throughout its history, Sardinia represents a fertile scenario for multicultural and multiracial encounter, not to mention linguistic contamination and variety. On the one hand, Sardinian literature has extensively recounted the presence of istràngius ('strangers, foreigners') in the island over the past centuries. On the other hand, Sardinian cinema has recently discovered the high potential of the migratory phenomenon as a current issue to narrate on screen. This paper aims to reflect upon the presence and representation of foreign people in Sardinian film and audiovisual productions, through the analysis of documentaries, short and feature films which, since the early 2000s, have shown the arrival of immigrants in Sardinia, as well as the process of cultural integration in the island territory.
Quaderni del CSCI. Rivista annuale di cinema italiano, 2020
L'avventura. International Journal of Italian Film and Media Landscapes, 2020
Over the last twenty years, due to the increasing attention that Italian cinema has devoted to ad... more Over the last twenty years, due to the increasing attention that Italian cinema has devoted to adolescence, teenagers have become key figures onscreen. Directors and filmmakers are mainly interested in narrating their daily routine and their interpersonal relations, as well as their troubled inner world. The filmmakers belonging to the so-called cinema del reale («cinema of reality») are also deeply involved in dealing with adolescence, by focusing on personal experiences and stories with a remarkable sense of understanding. This paper aims to analyse the role and image of adolescents portrayed in the films of four Italian directors, with the objective of examining the narrative practices and the representation patterns underlying the contemporary cinema of reality.
Studi e ricerche, 2019
What is the role assigned to places in the contemporary cinema of reality? How do documentarians ... more What is the role assigned to places in the contemporary cinema of reality? How do documentarians deal with the spatial dimension as they are engaged in experimenting new narrative approaches towards reality? Being central and problematic features in contemporary documentaries, places have brought directors and filmmakers to search for their very essence and reflect upon their function in relation to the story narrated and the people involved in the filming process. This paper aims to analyse the relevance of places and nonplaces‘ - in their institutional, political and even bureaucratic manifestations – in three films made by a couple of Italian documentarians, Massimo D‘Anolfi and Martina Parenti. More precisely, the purpose is to verify to what extent their filming method coincides with a precise audio-visual research practice,
which seems to be a widespread tendency in contemporary filmmaking.
Schermi. Storie e culture del cinema e dei media in Italia, 2019
De América a Europa Denominaciones de alimentos americanos en lenguas europeas, 2017
Analysis of the Sardinian names of three vegetables (potato, tomato and corn) natives of southern... more Analysis of the Sardinian names of three vegetables (potato, tomato and corn) natives of southern and central America.
Itinerari dialettali. Omaggio a Manlio Cortelazzo, 2019
La pagina “Facebook in sardu” è stata creata il 1 dicembre 2014 per sostenere il progetto lanciat... more La pagina “Facebook in sardu” è stata creata il 1 dicembre 2014 per sostenere il progetto lanciato da Alessandro “Lisandru” Beccu e sostenuto da Sardware, un gruppo composto da volontari impegnati a diffondere l’uso del sardo nella tecnologia digitale e nelle applicazioni di messaggistica istantanea (tra cui Telegram). Nel giro di pochi anni, la pagina è arrivata a contare più di 20.000 agradessimentos (like), ma il risultato più significativo, nel luglio 2016, è stata l’introduzione del sardo tra le lingue di interfaccia del social network più diffuso al mondo.
Il presente intervento intende ripercorrere le tappe che hanno portato a un tale risultato e osservarne l’accoglienza presso la comunità di utenti; analizzare, attraverso esempi concreti, i pro e i contro della scelta del sardo quale lingua di interfaccia di Facebook; esaminare la visibilità dell’iniziativa sul Web e nei giornali.
Lingua e cultura italiana nei mass media, 2014
Sonetàula, romanzo pubblicato nel 1961 dall'editore romano Canesi, è l'unica opera di narrativa d... more Sonetàula, romanzo pubblicato nel 1961 dall'editore romano Canesi, è l'unica opera di narrativa di Giuseppe Fiori (Silanus, 1923 -Roma, 2003, ma trae ispirazione dalla lettura di tre saggi fondamentali: Analfabetismo e delinquenza di Gonario Pinna (1951); Inchiesta a Orgosolo di Franco Cagnetta (1954); La vendetta barbaricina come ordinamento giuridico di Antonio Pigliaru (1959). La vicenda narrata nel romanzo si basa inoltre sulle testimonianze dei pastori raccolte da Fiori tra gli anni Cinquanta e Sessanta, successivamente confluite nel volume La società del malessere (1967). Angioni sostiene che Fiori avesse attinto da Sonetàula per scrivere il suo reportage, «segno che già allora forse considerava quel romanzo come cosa da dimenticare» (Angioni 1977: 32). Ne La società, più che in Baroni in laguna, «aleggia lo spirito della narrazione epica di Sonetàula, da cui, (. . . ), si riprendono interi passi, ottenendo un eVetto migliore che nel romanzo» (ivi, p. 34). La parola del romanziere si piega all'occhio del giornalista attento alla realtà della sua terra, avido di storie e di testimonianze. Prosa e poesia, "realtà" e finzione, si mescolano in un tessuto narrativo ricco e composito sul piano linguistico, dove si compie il mélange tra la lingua del pastore e quella dell'intellettuale. Lavinio 177
Dialetto: parlato, scritto, trasmesso, 2015
Il “nuovo cinema sardo” si caratterizza, tra le altre cose, per la rappresentazione della variega... more Il “nuovo cinema sardo” si caratterizza, tra le altre cose, per la rappresentazione della variegata realtà linguistica isolana, e per il vivace rapporto con la letteratura. Il presente contributo mira all’analisi linguistica del film Bellas mariposas (Salvatore Mereu, 2012), liberamente ispirato al romanzo di Sergio Atzeni, (Sellerio, 1996). L’obiettivo è vedere come la lingua cambia nel passaggio dal testo letterario a quello cinematografico, passando per il “guado” della sceneggiatura, struttura ibrida e transitoria (cfr. Pasolini 1972). Il regista, originario di Dorgali (NU), non ha dimestichezza con la varietà campidanese del sardo, codice natio del romanziere e lingua veicolare della narrazione di Bellas mariposas, ambientato nell’estrema periferia cagliaritana. Nel confronto dei tre testi analizzati, sarà interessante osservare come il regista tratta e forgia la materia linguistica del romanzo in funzione della sintassi cinematografica, e come il dialetto barbaricino affiora durante la stesura della sceneggiatura, scritta dallo stesso Mereu.
Le mille vite del dialetto, 2014
Il presente contributo si propone di analizzare un corpus di film realizzati in Sardegna, da auto... more Il presente contributo si propone di analizzare un corpus di film realizzati in Sardegna, da autori sardi e non, nel periodo compreso tra il 1961 e il 2013, e di individuare l’emergere di una lingua sarda e insieme di un italiano regionale sardo “autentici”, dove per “autentico” si intende un sistema linguistico spogliato dai tratti fonetici, lessicali e morfosintattici stereotipici che hanno caratterizzato la produzione cinematografica “sarda” fino agli alla
fine degli anni '70.
Letterature Straniere &, 2015
This article aims to investigate the linguistic features of the “new Sardinian cinema” through th... more This article aims to investigate the linguistic features of the “new Sardinian cinema” through the analysis of two representative films, Arcipelaghi by Giovanni Columbu (2001) and Sonetàula by Salvatore Mereu (2008), both adapted from contemporary Sardinian novels and characterised by the use of the local idioms (the Barbaricino and Campidanese varieties of Sardinian) alongside regional Italian. The two films will be regarded as intersemiotic translations, as per the terminology of Roman Jakobson, and tackling the macroscopic linguistic features on screen in terms of language variations (diamesic, diastratic and diaphasic).
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Call for papers/abstracts by Myriam Mereu
of Defence under George W. Bush (2001-2006), could flaunt one of his most powerful and efficient weapons: oratory. Since the beginning of his political career, in the early 60s, Rumsfeld produced an extensive number of memos, also known as snowflakes. These are confidential notes addressed to the US presidents and their personnel which have been lately unclassified and are currently accessible on Rumsfeld’s online archive. Through the mix and juxtaposition of known and unknown facts, The Unknown Known (2013) condenses thirty-three hours of interviews with Rumsfeld alternated with archive material, audio-visual footage and excerpts of memos read by the very voice of the protagonist. Regarded as a wise, astute man and skilled orator, Rumsfeld tries to seduce his audience by means of captivating words chosen from his vast lexical repertoire. This essay analyses Rumsfeld’s voice as a narrative device and the pragmatic role of language as a tool of political power, by observing the linguistic features, the concepts and metaphors underlying the discourses of one of the main architects of the military invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Submission deadline for proposals (300 words, in Italian or English, and accompanied by an essential bibliography): 10th March 2019.
Papers by Myriam Mereu
concepts such as ‘islandness’ and ‘islandscape’ have accompanied a general rethinking of the concept of insularity which encompasses the reflection over a cinematic representation of islands and islanders. The use of islands as cinematic landscapes and settings has reinforced cultural, mythical, and identity stereotypes associated with the island imagery built-up in literature, as well as the construction of the islander as a character exhibiting specific behavioural features. The film Cainà. L’isola e il continente (Gennaro Righelli, 1922) is emblematic insofar as it is the first feature film shot in Sardinia and its character is not just a symbol of feminine rebellion against a patriarchal society, but it also serves as an allegory of an unspoiled island, such as it was considered and depicted at that time. As islanders ourselves, we have wondered to what extent Cainà adheres to the stereotypes of islandness and insularity
conventionally ascribed to islands and, in this specific case, to Sardinia. Our paper aims to examine the genesis of the Sardinian insular imagination through the lens of the cinematic construction of ‘islanderness’ and ‘islanderscope’, an assortment of agency representing islanders — and islands — on screen.
of Defence under George W. Bush (2001-2006), could flaunt one of his most powerful and efficient weapons: oratory. Since the beginning of his political career, in the early 60s, Rumsfeld produced an extensive number of memos, also known as snowflakes. These are confidential notes addressed to the US presidents and their personnel which have been lately unclassified and are currently accessible on Rumsfeld’s online archive. Through the mix and juxtaposition of known and unknown facts, The Unknown Known (2013) condenses thirty-three hours of interviews with Rumsfeld alternated with archive material, audio-visual footage and excerpts of memos read by the very voice of the protagonist. Regarded as a wise, astute man and skilled orator, Rumsfeld tries to seduce his audience by means of captivating words chosen from his vast lexical repertoire. This essay analyses Rumsfeld’s voice as a narrative device and the pragmatic role of language as a tool of political power, by observing the linguistic features, the concepts and metaphors underlying the discourses of one of the main architects of the military invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq.
which seems to be a widespread tendency in contemporary filmmaking.
The full issue is available at the following link: https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/schermi/article/view/12958
Il presente intervento intende ripercorrere le tappe che hanno portato a un tale risultato e osservarne l’accoglienza presso la comunità di utenti; analizzare, attraverso esempi concreti, i pro e i contro della scelta del sardo quale lingua di interfaccia di Facebook; esaminare la visibilità dell’iniziativa sul Web e nei giornali.
fine degli anni '70.
of Defence under George W. Bush (2001-2006), could flaunt one of his most powerful and efficient weapons: oratory. Since the beginning of his political career, in the early 60s, Rumsfeld produced an extensive number of memos, also known as snowflakes. These are confidential notes addressed to the US presidents and their personnel which have been lately unclassified and are currently accessible on Rumsfeld’s online archive. Through the mix and juxtaposition of known and unknown facts, The Unknown Known (2013) condenses thirty-three hours of interviews with Rumsfeld alternated with archive material, audio-visual footage and excerpts of memos read by the very voice of the protagonist. Regarded as a wise, astute man and skilled orator, Rumsfeld tries to seduce his audience by means of captivating words chosen from his vast lexical repertoire. This essay analyses Rumsfeld’s voice as a narrative device and the pragmatic role of language as a tool of political power, by observing the linguistic features, the concepts and metaphors underlying the discourses of one of the main architects of the military invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq.
Submission deadline for proposals (300 words, in Italian or English, and accompanied by an essential bibliography): 10th March 2019.
concepts such as ‘islandness’ and ‘islandscape’ have accompanied a general rethinking of the concept of insularity which encompasses the reflection over a cinematic representation of islands and islanders. The use of islands as cinematic landscapes and settings has reinforced cultural, mythical, and identity stereotypes associated with the island imagery built-up in literature, as well as the construction of the islander as a character exhibiting specific behavioural features. The film Cainà. L’isola e il continente (Gennaro Righelli, 1922) is emblematic insofar as it is the first feature film shot in Sardinia and its character is not just a symbol of feminine rebellion against a patriarchal society, but it also serves as an allegory of an unspoiled island, such as it was considered and depicted at that time. As islanders ourselves, we have wondered to what extent Cainà adheres to the stereotypes of islandness and insularity
conventionally ascribed to islands and, in this specific case, to Sardinia. Our paper aims to examine the genesis of the Sardinian insular imagination through the lens of the cinematic construction of ‘islanderness’ and ‘islanderscope’, an assortment of agency representing islanders — and islands — on screen.
of Defence under George W. Bush (2001-2006), could flaunt one of his most powerful and efficient weapons: oratory. Since the beginning of his political career, in the early 60s, Rumsfeld produced an extensive number of memos, also known as snowflakes. These are confidential notes addressed to the US presidents and their personnel which have been lately unclassified and are currently accessible on Rumsfeld’s online archive. Through the mix and juxtaposition of known and unknown facts, The Unknown Known (2013) condenses thirty-three hours of interviews with Rumsfeld alternated with archive material, audio-visual footage and excerpts of memos read by the very voice of the protagonist. Regarded as a wise, astute man and skilled orator, Rumsfeld tries to seduce his audience by means of captivating words chosen from his vast lexical repertoire. This essay analyses Rumsfeld’s voice as a narrative device and the pragmatic role of language as a tool of political power, by observing the linguistic features, the concepts and metaphors underlying the discourses of one of the main architects of the military invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq.
which seems to be a widespread tendency in contemporary filmmaking.
The full issue is available at the following link: https://riviste.unimi.it/index.php/schermi/article/view/12958
Il presente intervento intende ripercorrere le tappe che hanno portato a un tale risultato e osservarne l’accoglienza presso la comunità di utenti; analizzare, attraverso esempi concreti, i pro e i contro della scelta del sardo quale lingua di interfaccia di Facebook; esaminare la visibilità dell’iniziativa sul Web e nei giornali.
fine degli anni '70.
intervento verte sull’analisi del parlato dei film realizzati in
Sardegna nell’arco di quasi un secolo (1916–2013). L’indagine ha interessato circa quaranta film a soggetto, cortometraggi e documentari
della produzione recente, di cui ho esaminato e analizzato i tratti e
gli elementi che testimoniano la variazione linguistica lungo gli assi
diacronico, diamesico, diastratico e diafasico. “Cent’anni di isolitudine”—con voluto sincretismo cultural—letterario — è un viaggio nella storia linguistica del cinema d’ambiente sardo, dalle prime immagini mute e in bianco e nero ai film della produzione recente, volto a ricercare lo sviluppo di un sistema di codici linguistici
e verbali di rappresentazione della Sardegna.
dall'uscita nelle sale italiane del film di Gianfranco Cabiddu, Il figlio di Bakunìn. La pellicola, tratta
dall'onomonimo romanzo di Sergio Atzeni del 1991, venne salutata dai critici come “lo spartiacque
del nuovo cinema sardo”, e in effetti proponeva temi e immagini inediti nel panorama
cinematografico isolano, caratterizzato fino a quel momento dalla rappresentazione del mondo
agropastorale e banditesco. Ma il film di Cabiddu è un'opera interessante anche sotto il profilo
linguistico, perché offre l'occasione per riflettere sull'oralità e la coralità della narrazione, tratti
distintivi e assi portanti del romanzo di Atzeni.
Quindici anni dopo, nel 2012, Salvatore Mereu presenta alla Mostra del cinema di Venezia, nella
sezione “Orizzonti”, il suo ultimo lungometraggio, Bellas mariposas (liberamente ispirato al
racconto di Sergio Atzeni del 1996). Protagoniste sono due ragazzine - Sara Podda e Maya Mulas -
coetanee di Cate Frau e Luna Cotzas, residenti nel quartiere di Santa Lamenera, all'estrema periferia
di Kasteddu. Un attento e accurato lavoro sulla lingua e sui luoghi ha permesso a Mereu di calare il
suo racconto nella Cagliari contemporanea, il cui cangiante cromatismo linguistico si ritrova nel
parlato della due adolescenti e degli altri personaggi della storia (il padre e la madre di Cate, Tonio,
Gigi Nioi, la signora Sias, ecc.).
Attraverso l'analisi del parlato filmico delle due opere atzeniane, si metteranno in luce le affinità e
le divergenze rispetto ai testi di partenza, i tratti ricreati ex novo in fase di sceneggiatura e messa in
scena, e infine si osserveranno gli elementi ascrivibili alla lingua realmente parlata in Sardegna e in
particolare a Cagliari.
heritage of folk myths and legends taken from the oral tradition. Legendary figures,
such as accabadoras (female figure who was enabled with the task of easing the sufferings
of the dying people), and fantasy creatures, such as cogas, surbiles (‘vampire witches’),
janas (‘fairies, pixies’), and panas (‘the ghosts of women who died in childbirth’) are being
revived by writers and film directors with the purpose of bringing their memory back to life
and share it with a wide audience of readers and spectators.
The analysis of imaginary and legendary creatures in Sardinian contemporary literature
cannot overlook orality and its central role in shaping popular imagination over the centuries.
Writing has replaced orality, whilst mass media and digital media are getting the
upper hand over storytelling as a practice of community and family aggregation, meant to
mark the long working hours and scare the children, amongst the most common functions
of Sardinian oral storytelling.
The literary corpus includes fairy tales, novels, tales and legends dealing with the Sardinian
oral tradition, whilst on the cinematic side I will examine short films, feature films and
documentaries made in Sardinia over the last fifteen years.
To read Italdeb24 online: http://italdeb.arts.unideb.hu/index.php/italdeb/issue/view/11