The Dialectic of Metafiction and Neorealism in Calvinos Baron in the T

The Dialectic of Metafiction and Neorealism in Calvino's Baron in the Trees. "I agree to my books being read as existential or as structural works, as Marxist or neo-Kantian, Freudianly or Jungianly: but above all I am glad to see that no one key will open the lock". The above quotation perhaps shows more than anything else the ambiguity of Calvino's works. The obsession to label all narratives arises from our compulsion to make sense of this world, as literary generic categories form part of our cosmologies. Calvino's work however, eludes us by drawing upon multifarious techniques and images to create a narrative that defies all generic conventions. Attempting to arrive at a sole conclusion with a single key to unlock Calvino's narrative is to underestimate its full potential, for no single label justifies the ambiguity of his work. Indeed, the bulk of the attention focused on Calvino's work is derived mainly from its elusiveness, and its inability to be placed into any particular category. Critics have long been divided over the polemics of his work, one significant aspect of which lies in whether or not Calvino's fiction can be considered as a fairytale or as a realist story. "realismo a carica fiabiasca" and fiaba a carica realistica" (realis m infused with fairytale and fairytale infused with realism). (Cavino, Introduction) What I am interested in is how the notions of metafiction and neorealism work in Calvino's narratives. Undoubtedly, as I have established earlier, it is not possible to label his work as falling into either one or the other generic category. Rather, I would say that both neorealist tendencies and metafictional elements work to make Calvino's short story. Antithetical as these two notions are in ... ...inburgh UP. 1993. Calvino, Italo. "Baron In The Trees" Our Ancestors. Trans. Archibald Colquhoun. London: Mandarin Paperbacks, 1992. ---. Introduction to gli amori difficili, 2nd ed vii. Turin: Einuadi, 1970. Cannon, JoAnn. Postmodern Italian Fiction. London and Toronto: Associated University Presses, 1989. Carter, Albert Howard. Italo Calvino: Metamorphoses of Fantasy, Studies in Speculative Fiction. Ann Arbor, Michigan: UMI Research Press, 1987. Gabriele, Tommasina. Italo Calvino: Eros and Language. London and Toronto: Associated University Presses, 1994. Lodge, David. "Metafiction." The Art Of Fiction. New York: Viking, 1993. 206-210. Waugh, Patricia. "What is Metafiction and why are they saying Such Horrible Things About It?" Metafiction. Ed. Mark Currie. Harlow: Longman, 1995. 39-54. USP Home | Literary Studies | Students Projects