Dacia Maraini in Conversation with Luca Zipoli
The internationally acclaimed and prize-winning author Dacia Maraini is joining Bryn Mawr College for the first time to discuss her latest works in conversation with Luca Zipoli, an assistant professor in the Department of Transnational Italian Studies.
Dacia Maraini will present her two most recent books: the English translation of her novel on Clare of Assisi (In Praise of Disobedience, transl. Jane Tylus, Rutgers University Press, 2023) and the collection of the historical essays and articles on women’s rights that she has written throughout her long career (In nome di Ipazia, Solferino, 2023).
In her presentation, Maraini will discuss historical women figures as part of a broader focus on the key Flexner theme of responses to collective trauma, specifically how gendered traumas have impacted Italian communities of women in the 20th and 21st centuries. Maraini will tell how, as an engaged civic writer and a non-denominational activist, she got inspired by the religious figure of Clare of Assisi, a 13th-century Italian woman who followed the example of Saint Francis and was then proclaimed a saint by the Catholic Church. She will explain why Claire’s choice for disobedience was revolutionary for her times, and she will compare her destiny to other influential female figures who pioneered the claim for women’s rights. She will focus on Hypatia, the late antique philosopher murdered under the Roman Empire for her free thinking.
The event will include live readings in English from Dacia Maraini’s books.
Bryn Mawr College welcomes the full participation of all individuals in all aspects of campus life. Should you wish to request a disability-related accommodation for this event, please contact the event sponsor/coordinator. Requests should be made as early as possible.