Another successful event last night at Karol.
Guest of the journalist Pierluigi Fiorenza and the actress Federica Citarella, as part of the literary review "Platealmente", the jurist and constitutionalist from Castellammare di Stabia Alfonso Celotto, with his latest book "Fondata sul lavoro", published by Mondadori. Celotto, who teaches Constitutional Law and Comparative Public Law at the University of Rome 3, has a dense literary production to his credit, which has consecrated him as a writer since 2014.
The current text deals with the birth of the Constitution in an ironic way, and in the genre of the novel. In the background the illustrious names of the Founding Fathers Togliatti, Nenni and De Gasperi and the background of the drafting of the fundamental law of the State.
A book that in an era in which the new generations no longer have the privilege of being able to count on the story of those who on June 2, 1946, with the popular vote led to the birth of the Republic and the election of a Constituent Assembly, aims to prevent the memory of what happened in that period from being lost or fading.
On stage with Prof. Celotto was the journalist Luigi Vicinanza. The two gave life to a fascinating dialogue on the subject, which captured the attention of the audience in the room, literally enraptured by the myriad of interesting information and anecdotes of the time.
Vicinanza's speech opened with a passionate and fitting description of the novel: "This is a historical novel because it falls in a precise moment in Italian history, it is a spy story because the English, American, Soviet secret services are intertwined and in some ways also the interference of the Vatican.
It is a journey into the fundamental principles of our constitution. We can say that for law students this should be an additional supplementary manual because it is a fascinating, enjoyable, ironic way to tell our Constitution. It really enters into constitutional law”.
Plot:
February 1947. At the end of the Second World War, Carmela is sent from the countryside to serve in Rome. She is twenty-two years old: almost illiterate, very buxom, smart. She finds work at the home of the Doctor, a brilliant jurist and ambitious politician, a member of the Constituent Assembly.
The Assembly's work continues with difficulty: Christian Democrats, Liberals and Communists cannot reach an agreement. Everything should have been ready by the end of 1946, but instead only the draft is ready. Article 1 of the new Charter states: "Italy is a democratic republic".
Without adjectives, without specifications. And here the real conflict opens. A preamble to the Constitution must be written, but above all the foundation of the Republic must be chosen. The influences intertwine and add up, and the Doctor becomes the linchpin of the negotiation, for his legal and diplomatic ability. He works a lot.
Always out and about in meetings during the day, at home at night at his desk. Carmela is curious: every morning she finds the Doctor's desk cluttered with papers and notes. Putting it back in order, she can't help but notice that among the notes are pieces of articles of the new constitution.
Articles that attract the attention of Marcello, her boyfriend: neighbor, aspiring magistrate, passionate about politics. Things, meanwhile, get complicated, and the pressure from the Americans and Russians increases. And what if it were possible to please everyone? Perhaps the text of article 1 could be the real compromise.
And maybe there is a trace on the Doctor's desk. Confused among the sheets copied by Carmela and rewritten by Marcello, who perhaps is not just a good boy studying to be a magistrate.
The book, as Professor Celotto explained to the audience during the meeting, tells – through four protagonists and their personal stories – an era that actually achieved a promised revolution.
In that particular Italy, women had never voted, only 5 percent of the population spoke Italian, a third of the population was illiterate and children did not go to school, but to work. In that Italy where people were subjects of the king, they bet on making the country a Republic. On June 2 and 3, 46, an epochal choice was made with the courage and dignity of the entire Nation.
“Founded on work” is therefore not an essay, but a pleasant novel suitable for everyone, where the reader can go through 173 pages immersing himself in the most fascinating historical moment of our country, whose feelings and ideals have given birth to a precious document, a source of pride for all of us Italians.
Annamaria Cafaro
