How is it possible that a novel, often interpreted as an elegy to the decline of the aristocracyhas found space in the DDRthe East Germanya socialist state committed to promoting progressive literature? An enigma, a paradox that still persists now, thirty-five years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. It must, however, be said that the work of Tomasi di Lampedusa it stood out from the Sicilian literary panorama used by the GDR for propaganda purposes. The regime, in fact, exploited the works of authors such as Giovanni Verga to convey messages of collectivism and resistance against external adversities, rereading them in the light of its own ideology. “The Leopard”however, with its multifaceted representation of the unification of Italy and Sicilian society, did not lend itself to easy ideological interpretations.
The figure of Alfred Kurella
Alfred Kurellaan influential cultural figure of the GDR, emerges as a key element for the proliferation and diffusion of “Il Gattopardo” beyond the Wall. A man of broad culture, with a past as an orthodox Marxist and close ties with the Soviet Union, Kurella had developed a profound passion for Italy and Sicily. There are even affinities between Kurella and Tomasi di Lampedusa: both coming from aristocratic families, polyglots, passionate about the Enlightenment and with travel experience in Europe. These biographical and intellectual convergences may have contributed to Kurella’s interest in “The Leopard.”
But how did this interest materialize into an editorial action? It is conceivable that Kurella acted in an unusual way for the time, promoting the publication of the book through a “pizzino” addressed to Else Manske-Krauszhead of the publishing house Rütten & Loening. Normally, publishing houses submitted their proposals to the regime for scrutiny, which authorized their printing. In this case, however, the initiative came directly from Kurella, in a gesture that testifies to his strong interest in the work. The editorial process, however, was not without obstacles. The publication of “Il Gattopardo” by the same publishing house that had published it the controversial “Doctor Zhivago” by Boris Pasternakconsidered a “traitor” by the regime, raised doubts. The Cold War had a profound impact on the cultural landscape, and literature was a terrain of ideological conflict.
The Leopard is published and spreads in East Germany
In this context, the intervention of Louis Aragon, a leading figure of the French Communist Party, proved decisive. In 1959, Aragon published an article titled “A Great Predator Has Appeared in Literature,” in which he praised “The Leopard” as one of the greatest novels of the centurycomparing him to Manzoni and Stendhal. The article, translated by Kurella and distributed in the GDR, contributed to legitimizing the work in the eyes of the regime. Despite Kurella’s support and the positive response to Aragon’s article, the publication of the novel met with resistance. Some editorial opinions, rigidly orthodox, advised against its printing, preferring works such as “Farmers of the South” by Rocco Scotellaro. But the wind was changing. In Italy and the USSR “The Leopard” received praise, and Kurella took the opportunity to defend it ardently on two important occasions: a meeting of the party’s central committee and a conference at an intelligentsia club.
There publication of “The Leopard” in East Germany represents a singular event, an anomaly in a rigidly controlled cultural context. Kurella’s intuition, Aragon’s influence and the changing political and cultural climate contributed to making this small editorial miracle possible. At that point, finding a copy of Tomasi di Lampedusa’s novel in the bookstores of East Berlin, Dresden or Leipzig was no longer a chimera. So, like finding a copy of “The Leopard” by Rütten & Loening in some impolite stall in Kreuzberg.
A book highlights this story
He also thought about telling this story in an excellent and in-depth way Bernardina Rago that in his work “The Leopard guarding the Wall” reveals many of the background stories regarding the fate of the Italian novel in the old GDR, offering a fascinating look at the complex relationship between literature and power during the Cold War.
Through a meticulous analysis of the correspondence between regime officials, Rago reconstructs the intricate phases of the editorial process, the pressures and disguised orders, up to the communication between two leading figures in publishing which sanctions Kurella’s victory: “The Leopard” crosses the Wall. A glittering piece of Italy beyond the Iron Curtain.