After the borders, the rebellions, the sailors, the conflicts and the demons, this time it’s the turn of the betrayals. This will in fact be the theme of the sixth edition of the History Festival which will be held in the spaces of the Mole Vanvitelliana in Ancona, from Thursday 29th August to Sunday 1st° September.
The Festival will be presented to the media Friday 23 August, at 11.30 am, at the Sala Giunta of the Municipality of Anconain the presence of the Mayor Daniele Silvettiof the President of the Festival Valentina Conti and the Consultant
scientific professor Fulvio Cammarano.
A fascinating topic that of betrayalsfull of unexpected implications, which has often caused real ‘deviations’ in the course of History and which will be addressed, discussed and explored in depth during the 24 meetings scheduled for this edition of the History Festivalchaired by the publisher Valentina Conti.
It will start on August 29th at 5pm in the Mole Auditorium, with the master lecture Of Emilio Gentileprofessor emeritus of Contemporary History at Sapienza University in Rome, among the greatest scholars of the history of fascism. With the significant title “July 25, 1943: a trial of the totalitarian regime”, he will open a rich program, in which protagonists of the investigation into history will reflect on moments and phenomenain which some developments have taken on the appearance of betrayals. Among others, we note the intervention of thethe former secretary of the PCI and DS, Achilles Occhetto, who, in conversation with Paolo Marconi, on August 30th at 6 pm, will talk about “Bolognina, an epochal turning point”. He will be the editorialist of the Corriere della Sera, Angel Panebiancoto reveal “The betrayal of intellectuals”, in dialogue, on September 1st at 6 pm, with Francis Maria Tiberi, while the actor and director will talk about “Betrayals between theatre and cinema” Luca Barbareschion August 31st at 7pm, responding to Valentina’s provocations Accounts.
Employment and underemployment, workers and bosses will be discussed with the interventions of two authoritative experts: Caesar Damianformer Minister of Labour and Social Security, and Mark Bentivoglicoordinator of BASE Italia, activist and expert in labor policies and industrial innovation, who was general secretary of the Italian Federation of Metalworkers Cisl.
And then, if Europe and the USA have contributed to defining and shaping the global order in which we live, how much and when have they done so? betrayed, often adopting dual and contradictory standards? They talk about it Eugenio Mazzarellaprofessor emeritus of Theoretical Philosophy at the University of Naples Federico II, in the dialogue “A ghost wanders around Europe” and Mario Del Peroprofessor of International History at SciencesPo, Paris, with “America: freedom or empire?”.
The program does not leave out ancient history, which will be interpreted by Professor John Brizzinor the Risorgimento, which the historian will deal with Carmine Pinto. There are many other areas of investigation, from
literature to architecture, to music, with the intervention of Alberto Maria Bantiwho teaches Contemporary History at the University of Pisa. And then the concert “Sono solo canzonette?”, on the evening of Saturday 31 August, during which Richard Mei And Luke Pecchiawith the complicity of Massimo Papini and Paolo Marconi, will reflectno on the relationship between song and history, between singer-songwriters and traditional love songs. The “betrayed” religions, Christianity and Judaism, will be approached from different points of view, as well as the use of language in poetic creation and translation. And again, we will not fail to interpret the history of women in power and those forced, in all times, to face the impact of war on civil society.
All events are free to enter and require no reservation.
A festival, a concept
To betray means, following the etymology of the word, to hand over to the enemy. For this reason it is something that in our societies is inevitably accompanied by infamy. In the vision of Dante Alighieri – who had before his eyes the evocative mosaics of the Last Judgement visible in the Baptistery of Florence and probably made by Coppo di Marcovaldo –, betrayal is the most serious sin: even Lucifer, the rebel angel who, thrown by God to the center of the Earth, crushed Judas, Brutus and Cassius in his jaws, was guilty of it.
Our life is full of betrayals. And History. But, as with all concepts, a shift in meaning is always around the corner. Because the idea of betrayal is obviously debatable: that is, it depends on which side you are on. We betray people and we betray ideals, but at the same time we are betrayed by people and ideals. Personal gain is often used as a watershed to condemn betrayal. It is still difficult to distinguish it from the change in situations.
Some cases. Did Napoleon betray the French Revolution, or was he its concrete executor? Without Judas there would have been no Christianity; and today, who are the Judases with whom we share the shocks of history? We ourselves, when we change
perspective. But does adapting it mean betraying it? The moral dimension that characterizes the fidelity/betrayal binomial does not represent, from a historical point of view, an absolute reference. For example, did the Bandiera brothers, so dear to the Italian Risorgimento, betray the Austrian Empire or were they faithful to the ideal of the Italian cause? It can be said that they abandoned an order in which they did not believe in order to look to the future.
The sixth edition of the History Festival will offer everyone the opportunity to pause and reflect on betrayal – a highly controversial category of human behavior – always capable of arousing indignation, but at the same time of forcing us to reflect, even starting from individual stories, on the thousand declinations of its meaning.
As always, it is up to History, with the fundamental contribution of other social and human sciences, to undertake the difficult task of investigating complexity, distinguishing the variety of experiences, contextualizing, these unavoidable areas of historical research without which there remains only the space for simplification, conceptual flattening and presentism, lethal viruses for the values of freedom and democracy.
Carlo Franza
Tags: Achille Occhetto, Ancona- Mole Vanvitelliana, Angelo Panebianco, Municipality of Ancona, Emilio Gentile professor emeritus of Contemporary History at Sapienza University of Rome, Eugenio Mazzarella professor emeritus of Theoretical Philosophy, Festival of History, Francesco Maria Tiberi, Luca Barbareschi, Mario Del Pero professor of International History, Prof. Carlo Franza, betrayals