Alessandro Portelli
Encyclopedia
Alessandro Portelli is an Italian scholar of American literature and culture, oral historian, writer for the daily newspaper il manifesto
, and musicologist. He is currently a professor of Anglo-American literature at the University of Rome La Sapienza
. In the United States he is best known for his oral history
work, which has compared workers’ accounts of industrial conflicts in Harlan County, Kentucky
and Terni
, Italy.
, where he taught American literature from 1974 to 1981. He moved to the faculty of human sciences at the University of Rome La Sapienza to teach American literature in 1981 and remains there to the present.
A meeting between Portelli and University of Kentucky
(UK) sociologist David Walls
, facilitated by journalist Beniamino Placido
, during a visit by Walls to Rome, Italy in summer 1973 led to them visiting Harlan County together during a trip by Portelli to the United States that fall. Portelli returned as a James Still
fellow at the UK Appalachian Center in fall 1983, and began developing his extensive oral history work in Harlan County. He also began a continuing exchange program, involving graduate students and faculty, between the UK Appalachian Center and the University of Rome La Sapienza.
Portelli’s writing has shifted the focus of oral history from whether the subject’s account is historically accurate to the meaning of the story and the nature of memory. Mary Marshall Clark of Columbia University
summarizes its significance: “Portelli’s work has transformed oral history from being a kind of stepchild of history into a literary genre in its own right. He has allowed us to see oral histories as more than eyewitness accounts that are either true or false and to look for themes and structures of the stories.”
Asked to describe his biggest contribution to oral history, Portelli stated, "I brought a literary approach to narrative ... I was interested in narratives that were not factually true because it’s one of the ways through which you can get at the meaning and the subjectivity as well as the facts of what actually happened." Portelli's 1991 book based on his oral histories, The Death of Luigi Trastulli, interpreted the meaning of the differing press and oral accounts of the killing of a protesting union member. Portelli's 1999 book on the 1944 Fosse Ardeatine massacre by Nazis in Rome, The Order Has Been Carried Out, won an Oral History Association
award as well as the prestigious Viareggio Prize
. His They Say in Harlan County won the W. D. Weatherford Award of the Appalachian Studies Association
for the best nonfiction book on Appalachia published in 2010.
Portelli has been a contributor to the independent left-wing Italian daily paper il manifesto since its founding in 1971. His commentary often includes observations on the United States.
From 2002 to 2008 he was the Mayor of Rome’s advisor for historical memory, and he served a year (2006-2007) on the City Council of Rome.
Portelli has also published books in Italian about Washington Irving, Joseph Conrad, Mark Twain, Woody Guthrie, and African American writers.
Il Manifesto
il manifesto is an Italian newspaper. While it calls itself communist, it is not connected to any political party. It was founded as a monthly review in 1969 by a collective of left-wing journalists engaged in the wave of critical thought and activity on the Italian left in that period. Prominent...
, and musicologist. He is currently a professor of Anglo-American literature at the University of Rome La Sapienza
University of Rome La Sapienza
The Sapienza University of Rome, officially Sapienza – Università di Roma, formerly known as Università degli studi di Roma "La Sapienza", is a coeducational, autonomous state university in Rome, Italy...
. In the United States he is best known for his oral history
Oral history
Oral history is the collection and study of historical information about individuals, families, important events, or everyday life using audiotapes, videotapes, or transcriptions of planned interviews...
work, which has compared workers’ accounts of industrial conflicts in Harlan County, Kentucky
Harlan County, Kentucky
Harlan County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It was formed in 1819. As of 2000, the population was 33,200. Its county seat is Harlan...
and Terni
Terni
Terni is a city in southern Umbria, central Italy, capital of the province of Terni, located in the plain of the Nera river. It is 104 km N of Rome, 36 km NW of Rieti, and 29 km S of Spoleto.-History:...
, Italy.
Early life and education
Portelli was born in Rome in 1942, and was raised in Terni, an industrial town 65 miles to the north. His father was a civil servant, and his mother was a teacher of English. He spent his senior year of high school as an American Field Service exchange student in the Los Angeles area. He studied at the University of Rome La Sapienza, receiving degrees in law in 1966 and in English in 1972. He began working for the Italian National Research Council in 1962.Academic career
Portelli began his academic career at the University of SienaUniversity of Siena
The University of Siena in Siena, Tuscany is one of the oldest and first publicly funded universities in Italy. Originally called Studium Senese, the University of Siena was founded in 1240. The University has around 20,000 students, nearly half of Siena's total population of around 54,000...
, where he taught American literature from 1974 to 1981. He moved to the faculty of human sciences at the University of Rome La Sapienza to teach American literature in 1981 and remains there to the present.
A meeting between Portelli and University of Kentucky
University of Kentucky
The University of Kentucky, also known as UK, is a public co-educational university and is one of the state's two land-grant universities, located in Lexington, Kentucky...
(UK) sociologist David Walls
David Walls (academic)
David Walls is an activist and academic who has made significant contributions to Appalachian studies and to the popular understanding of social movements...
, facilitated by journalist Beniamino Placido
Beniamino Placido
Beniamino Placido was an Italian journalist, writer and television critic.Placido was a columnist on Italian culture for the newspaper La Repubblica and wrote three best selling books on television in the 1990s....
, during a visit by Walls to Rome, Italy in summer 1973 led to them visiting Harlan County together during a trip by Portelli to the United States that fall. Portelli returned as a James Still
James Still
James Still was an American poet, novelist and folklorist. He lived most of his life in a log house along the Dead Mare Branch of Little Carr Creek, Knott County, Kentucky...
fellow at the UK Appalachian Center in fall 1983, and began developing his extensive oral history work in Harlan County. He also began a continuing exchange program, involving graduate students and faculty, between the UK Appalachian Center and the University of Rome La Sapienza.
Portelli’s writing has shifted the focus of oral history from whether the subject’s account is historically accurate to the meaning of the story and the nature of memory. Mary Marshall Clark of Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
summarizes its significance: “Portelli’s work has transformed oral history from being a kind of stepchild of history into a literary genre in its own right. He has allowed us to see oral histories as more than eyewitness accounts that are either true or false and to look for themes and structures of the stories.”
Asked to describe his biggest contribution to oral history, Portelli stated, "I brought a literary approach to narrative ... I was interested in narratives that were not factually true because it’s one of the ways through which you can get at the meaning and the subjectivity as well as the facts of what actually happened." Portelli's 1991 book based on his oral histories, The Death of Luigi Trastulli, interpreted the meaning of the differing press and oral accounts of the killing of a protesting union member. Portelli's 1999 book on the 1944 Fosse Ardeatine massacre by Nazis in Rome, The Order Has Been Carried Out, won an Oral History Association
Oral History Association
The Oral History Association is a professional association for oral historians and others interested in oral history. It is based in the United States but has international membership. Its mission is "to bring together all persons interested in oral history as a way of collecting and interpreting...
award as well as the prestigious Viareggio Prize
Viareggio Prize
The Viareggio Literary Prize is a prestigious Italian literary award, whose first edition was in 1930, and is named after the Tuscan city of Viareggio...
. His They Say in Harlan County won the W. D. Weatherford Award of the Appalachian Studies Association
Appalachian Studies Association
The Appalachian Studies Association is an organization of scholars and activists interested in Appalachian studies.According to its web site, “The Appalachian Studies Association was formed in 1977 by a group of scholars, teachers, and regional activists who believed that shared community has...
for the best nonfiction book on Appalachia published in 2010.
Public intellectual
In 1972 Portelli founded the Circolo Gianni Bosio, an activist collective dedicated to studying folklore, oral history, and people's culture. He chaired the group, which continued for twenty years, through 1992. Based in Rome, the collective published a journal, I Giorni Cantati, for 23 years, ending in 1995. The Circolo resumed activity in 1999 and continues to date.Portelli has been a contributor to the independent left-wing Italian daily paper il manifesto since its founding in 1971. His commentary often includes observations on the United States.
From 2002 to 2008 he was the Mayor of Rome’s advisor for historical memory, and he served a year (2006-2007) on the City Council of Rome.
Books
- The Death of Luigi Trastulli and Other Stories: Form and Meaning in Oral History (State University of New York Press, 1991). ISBN 978-0-7914-0430-0
- The Text and the Voice: Writing, Speaking and Democracy in American Literature (Columbia University Press, 1994). ISBN 978-0-231-08495-6
- The Battle of Valle Giulia: Oral History and the Art of Dialogue (University of Wisconsin Press, 1997). ISBN 978-0-299-15374-8
- The Order Has Been Carried Out: History, Memory and Meaning of a Nazi Massacre in Rome (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004). ISBN 978-1-4039-8008-3
- They Say in Harlan County: An Oral History (Oxford University Press, 2010). ISBN 978-0-19-973568-6
Portelli has also published books in Italian about Washington Irving, Joseph Conrad, Mark Twain, Woody Guthrie, and African American writers.
Recording compiled
- Avanti Popolo: Revolutionary Songs of the Italian Working Class. Paredon Records, 1976; reissued as a CD by Smithsonian FolkwaysSmithsonian FolkwaysSmithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was founded in 1987 after the family of Moses Asch, founder of Folkways...
, 2008.
External links
- Alessandro Portelli’s blog (in Italian and English)
- Website of the Circolo Gianni Bosio (in Italian)
- "Harlan 30 Years," YouTube video of Portelli's talk to Columbia University seminar, June 30, 2010, 59 min.
- "Alessandro Portelli Lecture on They Say in Harlan County," video of lecture at the University of North Carolina, November 3, 2010.