Alberto Moravia

Alberto Moravia
Moravia photographed by Paolo Monti in 1982
Moravia photographed by Paolo Monti in 1982
BornAlberto Pincherle
(1907-11-28)28 November 1907
Rome, Kingdom of Italy
Died26 September 1990(1990-09-26) (aged 82)
Rome, Italy
Resting placeCampo Verano, Rome
Pen nameAlberto Moravia
OccupationNovelist, journalist, playwright, essayist, film critic
Notable worksGli indifferenti (Time of Indifference, 1929)
Il conformista (The Conformist, 1947)
Racconti romani (Roman Tales, 1954)
La ciociara (Two Women, 1957)
Notable awardsStrega Prize (1952)
Premio Marzotto (1957)
Viareggio Prize (1961)
Premio Mondello (1982)
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1941; died 1985)​
Carmen Llera
​
(m. 1986)​
PartnerDacia Maraini (1962–1978)
Literature portal

Alberto Pincherle (Italian: [alˈbɛrto ˈpiŋkerle]; 28 November 1907 – 26 September 1990), known by his pseudonym Alberto Moravia (US: /moʊˈrɑːviə, -ˈreɪv-/ moh-RAH-vee-ə, -⁠RAY-,[1][2][3] Italian: [moˈraːvja]), was an Italian novelist and journalist. His novels explored matters of modern sexuality, social alienation and existentialism. Moravia is best known for his debut novel Gli indifferenti (The Time of Indifference 1929) and for the anti-fascist novel Il conformista (The Conformist 1947), the basis for the film The Conformist (1970) directed by Bernardo Bertolucci. Other novels of his adapted for the cinema are Agostino, filmed with the same title by Mauro Bolognini in 1962; Il disprezzo (A Ghost at Noon or Contempt), filmed by Jean-Luc Godard as Le Mépris (Contempt 1963); La noia (Boredom), filmed with that title by Damiano Damiani in 1963 and released in the US as The Empty Canvas in 1964 and La ciociara, filmed by Vittorio De Sica as Two Women (1960). Cédric Kahn's L'Ennui (1998) is another version of La noia.

Moravia once remarked that the most important facts of his life had been his illness, a tubercular infection of the bones that confined him to a bed for five years and Fascism because they both caused him to suffer and do things he otherwise would not have done. "It is what we are forced to do that forms our character, not what we do of our own free will."[4] Moravia was an atheist.[5] His writing was marked by its factual, cold, precise style, often depicting the malaise of the bourgeoisie. It was rooted in the tradition of nineteenth-century narrative, underpinned by high social and cultural awareness.[6] Moravia believed that writers must, if they were to represent reality, ‘a more absolute and complete reality than reality itself’, "assume a moral position, a clearly conceived political, social, and philosophical attitude" but also that, ultimately, "A writer survives in spite of his beliefs".[7] Between 1959 and 1962 Moravia was president of PEN International, the worldwide association of writers.

  1. ^ "Moravia, Alberto". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (5th ed.). HarperCollins. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  2. ^ "Moravia". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  3. ^ "Moravia". Collins English Dictionary. HarperCollins. Retrieved 22 August 2019.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference Accrocca was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Viola was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Dego was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Burnside was invoked but never defined (see the help page).