Francesco Mastriani: due capitoli di storia e di letteratura di Naoli e d'Italia

Abstract

Two historical novels by Francesco Mastriani (1819-1891) are presented here. They illustrate well the point of view of many Neapolitan intellectuals after the unification of Italy. The first novel, La figlia del croato (1867), describes the enthusiastic response to the annexation of Veneto and Venezia to the newly formed Regno d’Italia as a result of the third war of independence. The other novel, Luigia Sanfelice / Due feste al mercato (1870 e 1876), clarifies the sense of delusion and discomfort caused by the “Neapolitan novel” written by Alexandre Dumas father, and it rectifies his historical perspective on the Neapolitan Revolution of 1799