THE END OF EDEN?

The article takes an idea from the New York Times feature story “In a Funk, Italy Sings an Aria of Disappointment” by Ian Fisher to understand the way in which foreign see Italian life; and if still exist the Italian Eden.

In the past, Italy was seen as the historical and cultural Eden, a place where life was very cheap for outlander visitors, but, after years of inflaction, today life in Italy has became very expensive. In spite of this, too many tourists continue to came in Italy every years to find the Italian way of life, but they don’t meet the Italian reality of daily life; for this reason our writter prefear interview foreign residents and not fleeting travellers.

By those interviews we can see a country in decline.

Robert Nordvall, native Pennsylvanian, claims that Italians always complaining of the public aspects even in the 1960s’ with the economic boom; they have always had a pessimistic vision of the future and this is the cause of the economic slowdown.

Also in the interview grant by Jeremy Boudreau there is the hope that Italy can keep up with the Europe development being not only a country for tourists.

An art historian crub for the excessive cost of the art’s ticket, now inaccessibles for many people.

The article completed with the consideration that bringing the Italian problems on the international press has made the positive effect to promove a discussion on the Italian reality way of life that isn’t only pizza and mandolino.

I think that the Italian Eden has never existed, it was only a romantic idea of some rich and superficial travelers; our country has always been more complex then the foreigns think with many deep contradictions that are the problem and the power of Italy at the same time.

Lia Fabbri