“Screening Space” in Italian Science Fiction

Within the second approach of the Conference programme, the present paper proposes to “screen space” (Sobchack 1997) in contemporary Italian Science Fiction.

Starting point will be the comparative analysis of two established authors, both originary from Bologna, Stefano Benni and Valerio Evangelisti, whose narratives strongly draw on the boundaries of Science Fiction. From his first novel Terra! (1983) to Spiriti (2000), Benni envisions new environments that recall literary contexts and spaces, ranging from Ariosto's lunatic space (Paternoster in Roelens & Lanslots 1993) to a typical Ph.K. Dick world, in which antagonistic forces operate. Critics label Benni's space as “fantastic” because of the surreal aspect of the settings described in a playful, plurilinguistic way. The comical tone of the descriptions highly contrasts with the pessimistic, dystopian message Benni's novel deliver. Evangelisti, at his turn, plays with genres within his Science Fiction novels including many references to the historic novel, adventure stories, popular film, visual arts... Moreover, he spatialises antagonisms so that space gets an allegoric dimension. Paradoxically, in his SF novels – just think of the “Nicolas Eymerich” series (1994-...; Somigli 2007), Evangelisti combines the allegoric space with a historic realism.

Space, whether the product of the fantastic or mimesis, allows both Benni and Evangelisti to embed their commitment to the New Italian Epic, as described by Wu Ming (group of writers from Bologna), in a literary text. Along with the Italian noman noir, another proof of the revival of genre literature in Italy, Science Fiction is capable of offering a critical approach to today's society.

Therefore the paper will

  • explore space in the works by Benni and Evangelisti relating the texts to other contemporary (Italian) writers
  • study the construction of space (intertextuality)
  • relate the literary space to its paratext (maps, epilogues, aknowledgements, notes...)
  • screen the aesthetics and ethics of space
  • discuss its adaptations (films and graphic novels).

Inge Lanslots

Websites authors:

dr. Inge Lanslots

Institutional Affiliation: Lessius University College (University of Louvain, KUL), University of Antwerp (UA)

Inge Lanslots is Senior Lecturer in Italian at Lessius and the University of Antwerp. She completed her doctoral thesis on the notion of time in contemporary Italian Literature, Gli orologi molli: la narrativa italiana contemporanea e la conoscenza del tempo (1998). She published several articles on various Italian authors (Benni, Buzzati, Calvino, Ortese, Pressburger, Tabucchi) and co-edited Piccole finzioni con importanza. Valori della narrativa italiana contemporanea (1994).

(

Lessius (KUL)

Departement Toegepaste Taalkunde

Sint-Andriesstraat 2

2000 Antwerpen

e-mail:

Conference: Science Fiction across Media: Adaptation/Novelisation

May 28-30, 2009

K.U. Leuven, Belgium

This conference wants to bring together scholars from science fiction studies, adaptation studies and literary studies to share their expertise and shed new light on science-fiction adaptations and novelisations.

Besides film adaptation, there will be a special focus on the underdiscussed phenomenon of novelisation. Basically, novelisations are novels adapted from or based on a film, a TV series, a video game, or other media. In contrast to the more common adaptation process from book to film, novelisations are usually padded versions of screenplays. At least in its commercial or industrial form, a novelisation is released more or less concurrently with the film, as a marketing tool, in order to heighten visibility and awareness of the title. On the book market, however, the general public may easily confuse novelisations with novels adapted into films, as the latter are normally republished as tie-ins to film adaptations. As the study of novelisations and cinéromans has already progressed substantially in the French and Italian departments, this conference will be centred on English-language novelisations especially.

The conference also seeks to extend the adaptation debate on two terrains. First, genre is a dimension that has been fairly disregarded in adaptation studies. In particular, we shall investigate not only the relations between sf literature and sf cinema, but also how the focus on one genre contributes to our understanding of typical adaptation issues such as fidelity or the supremacy of the original text. Concerning science-fiction novelisations, it will be interesting to see how they relate and/or do not

relate to sf literature and cinema. And while the success of novelisations and spin-off novels is considered partly responsible for the niche science-fiction literature has been pushed into, some of the most interesting novelisations in general belong to the science-fiction genre.

Second, we would also like to encourage analyses that approach adaptation from the narratological concept of space. Since narrative has traditionally been associated with temporality rather than spatiality, space has always lagged behind in narrative theory. As it can be connected with other narratological concepts as well as paratextual and cognitive aspects, it is perhaps ideally suited to balance different mediatic representations against each other.

We invite papers from different perspectives and disciplines to contribute

to the discussion on science-fiction adaptation and novelisation. The

conference will be held in English.

Please send proposals, including a 300-word abstract, a brief CV,

institutional affiliation, and e-mail address, to:

Thomas.VanParys_at_arts.kuleuven.be

The deadline for proposals is February 1, 2009.

======

From the Literary Calls for Papers Mailing List

cfp_at_english.upenn.edu

more information at

======

schema & outline paper

explore spatiality in 2 contemporary writers

before: portrayal of BENNI & EVANGELISTI

  • outline career & education
  • career B: 1976 Bar Sport (short stories)
  • production:
  • multifaceted nature of writings B: novels, short stories, plays, poetry ;; non fiction: journalistic writings (Rep, manifesto) ;; seminars on creative writing ;; music – BaldandersThelonious Monk
  • ! BOLOGNA
  • sf fits within narrative? How?
  • Passion for popular genres (B: SF, music, tv) – B does not profile himself as a SF writer, contrary to Evangelisti
  • Passion for popular genres which he studies thoroughly ; started as a reader of Urania ;

Space = costrued

Comic travesty
Pessimism / Writing within the genre overcoming/ blurring its boundaries
< consumerism
mass media
ecology (Terra! 1983) / < consumerism
mass media
ecology (Terra! 1983)
NIE
Wu Ming & Pincio
Raise awareness
Italy of the future = Tristalia (Elianto)
Interplanetarian
Intergalactical
Terra
Visionary aspect : quote van encyclopedia
Characters - perspectives
SF
Language – creativity
Inventories

Other mediatic representations

From:

Subject: FW: stefano benni

Date: Wed 20 May 2009 08:56:37 GMT+02:00

To:

______

Van: [

Verzonden: vrijdag 15 mei 2009 16:11

Aan:

Onderwerp: stefano benni

Comments:

biblio

______

Record: 1

Title:

Baldanders iterum redivivus anno 2004: Freunds Gespensterlied und Bennis Baldanders oder die Faszination der simplicianischen Figuren in der Moderne-über Grass und Borges hinaus

Author(s):

Battafarano, Italo Michele

Source:

Morgen-Glantz: Zeitschrift der Christian Knorr von Rosenroth-Gesellschaft 2005; 15: 89-95.

ISSN:

0942-0924

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: German literature;

Period: 2000-2099;

Primary Subject Author: Freund, Wieland (1969- );

Primary Subject Work: Das Gespensterlied (2004);

Genre: novel;

Subject Terms:

and Benni, Stefano (1947- ): Baldanders (2004); Grass, Günter (1927- ): Das Treffen in Telgte (1979); The Meeting at Telgte; Borges, Jorge Luis (1899-1986); and Guerrero, Margarita: El libro de los seres imaginarios (1967); sources in Grimmelshausen, Hans Jakob Christoffel von (1622-1676); Der abenteuerliche Simplicissimus Teutsch (1669); The Adventures of a Simpleton

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: German

Update Code: 200501

Sequence Numbers: 2005-2-9708

Accession Number:

2005201216

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Record: 2

Title:

Benni e le nuove avventure di Pinocchia: Comici appunti per una moderna 'éducation sentimentale'

Author(s):

De Pau, Daniela

Source:

Nemla Italian Studies (NemlaIS) 2005 Mar-Apr; 29: 111-24. [Journal Detail]

Peer Reviewed:

Yes

ISSN:

1087-6715

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Primary Subject Work: Pinocchia (1999);

Genre: drama;

Subject Terms:

comedy; treatment of marionettes

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: Italian

Update Code: 200601

Sequence Numbers: 2006-2-11804

Accession Number:

2006460660

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Record: 3

Title:

Di vincitori, di vinti e d'idee: Fanciulli e filosofia nei romanzi di Stefano Benni

Author(s):

Perissinotto, Cristina

Source:

RLA: Romance Languages Annual (RLAn) 1997; 9: 300-04. [Journal Detail]

Peer Reviewed:

Yes

ISSN:

1050-0774

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Primary Subject Work: La Compagnia dei Celestini (1992); Elianto (1996);

Genre: novel; Bildungsroman;

Subject Terms:

treatment of philosophy; relationship to children

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: Italian

Update Code: 199901

Sequence Numbers: 1999-2-11860

Accession Number:

1999047825

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Record: 4

Title:

Echoes of Counterculture in Stefano Benni's Humour

Author(s):

Boria, Monica

Source:

Romance Studies (RSt) 2005 Mar; 23 (1): 29-42. [Journal Detail]

Peer Reviewed:

Yes

ISSN:

0263-9904

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Genre: poetry; and fiction;

Subject Terms:

prose; humor; interdisciplinary approach

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: English

Update Code: 200501

Sequence Numbers: 2005-2-12328

Electronic Access:

DOI: 10.1179/026399005x27368

Accession Number:

2005460490

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______

Record: 5

Title:

I romanzi di Stefano Benni

Author(s):

Boria, Monica

Source:

pp. 43-58 IN: Pellegrini, Franca (ed. and preface); Tarantino, Elisabetta (ed. and preface); Il romanzo contemporaneo: Voci italiane. Leicester, England: Troubador; 2006. (xi, 138 pp.)

ISBN:

9781904744184

Series:

Troubador Italian Studies (Troubador Italian Studies)

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Genre: novel;

Subject Terms:

narrative technique; relationship to postmodernism

Document Information:

Publication Type: book article

Language of Publication: Italian

Update Code: 200701

Sequence Numbers: 2007-2-12328

Accession Number:

2007460940

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Record: 6

Title:

Il Medioevo alla Berlusconi: Zu Stefano Benni: La Compagnia dei Celestini (1992)

Author(s):

Marx, Barbara

Source:

Italienisch: Zeitschrift fur Italienische Sprache und Literatur (ItalienischZ) 1995 Nov; 17 (2 [34]): 42-56. [Journal Detail]

Notes:

It. sum.

Peer Reviewed:

No

ISSN:

0171-4996

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Primary Subject Work: La Compagnia dei Celestini (1992);

Genre: novel;

Subject Terms:

treatment of Middle Ages

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: German

Update Code: 199601

Sequence Numbers: 1996-2-10310

Accession Number:

1996058016

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Record: 7

Title:

Interview with Stefano Benni: A Postmodern Moraliste

Author(s):

Degli Esposti, Cristina

Source:

Italian Quarterly (IQ) 1995 Winter-Spring; 32 (123-124): 99-105. [Journal Detail]

Peer Reviewed:

Yes

ISSN:

0021-2954

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Subject Terms:

interview

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: English

Update Code: 199501

Sequence Numbers: 1995-2-8873

Accession Number:

1995057421

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Record: 8

Title:

Le Paris infernal de Stefano Benni

Author(s):

Obert, Judith

Source:

Cahiers d'Etudes Romanes (CER) 2001; 6 (2): 369-82. [Journal Detail]

Peer Reviewed:

No

ISSN:

0180-684X

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Genre: novel;

Subject Terms:

treatment of Paris

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: French

Update Code: 200401

Sequence Numbers: 2004-2-10950

Accession Number:

2004652582

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Record: 9

Title:

Original und Pastiche in Wort und Bild: Stefano Bennis Erzählsammlung Il bar sotto il mare

Author(s):

Jacobs, Helmut C.

Source:

Italienisch: Zeitschrift für Italienische Sprache und Literatur (ItalienischZ) 1997 Nov; 38: 21-37. [Journal Detail]

Notes:

Italian summary.

Peer Reviewed:

No

ISSN:

0171-4996

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Primary Subject Work: Il bar sotto il mare (1987);

Genre: short story;

Subject Terms:

and illustration; image-text relations; pastiche

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: German

Update Code: 199701

Sequence Numbers: 1997-2-9670

Accession Number:

1997056461

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Record: 10

Title:

Scrittori a Verona: Conversazioni con Ippolita Avalli, Stefano Benni, Marco Lodoli, Sandra Petrignani e Sebastiano Vassalli

Author(s):

Tani, Stefano (ed.)

Source:

Verona, Italy: Riccio; 2001. (150 pp.)

ISBN:

9788890059100

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Avalli, Ippolita; and Benni, Stefano (1947- ); Lodoli, Marco (1956- ); Petrignani, Sandra (1952- ); Vassalli, Sebastiano (1941- );

Subject Terms:

interview

Document Information:

Publication Type: book

Language of Publication: Italian

Update Code: 200201

Sequence Numbers: 2002-2-11446

Accession Number:

2002460673

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Record: 11

Title:

Stefano Benni (1947- )

Author(s):

Ward, David

Source:

pp. 25-31 IN: Pallotta, Augustus (ed. and introd.); Italian Novelists Since World War II, 1965-1995. Detroit, MI: Gale; 1999. (xxiv, 367 pp.)

ISBN:

9780787618513

Series:

Dictionary of Literary Biography (DLB): 196

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Document Information:

Publication Type: book article

Language of Publication: English

Update Code: 200501

Sequence Numbers: 2005-2-12327

Accession Number:

2005463948

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Record: 12

Title:

Terra! di Stefano Benni: Viaggio nella leggerezza cosmica

Author(s):

Paternoster, Annick

Source:

pp. 191-95 IN: Roelens, Nathalie (ed. & introd.); Lanslots, Inge (ed.); Piccole finzioni con importanza: Valori della narrativa italiana contemporanea. Ravenna: Longo; 1993. (206 pp.)

Notes:

Convegno Internazionale, maggio 1991, Univ. di Anversa

Series:

Portico: Biblioteca di Lettere e Arti (Portico): 99

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Primary Subject Work: Terra! (1990);

Genre: novel;

Subject Terms:

treatment of space travel

Document Information:

Publication Type: book article

Language of Publication: Italian

Update Code: 199601

Sequence Numbers: 1996-2-10311

Accession Number:

1996058047

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Record: 13

Title:

The Pen and the Prophet

Author(s):

Perissinotto, Cristina

Source:

RLA: Romance Languages Annual (RLAn) 1996; 8: 287-91. [Journal Detail]

Peer Reviewed:

Yes

ISSN:

1050-0774

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: English literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Orwell, George (1903-1950);

Primary Subject Work: 1984 (1949);

Genre: novel;

Subject Terms:

treatment of prophecy; compared to Benni, Stefano (1947- ): La Compagnia dei Celestini (1992); Flaiano, Ennio (1910-1972): 'La felice città dei ladri'; Serra, Michele (1954- ): Il nuovo che avanza (1989); sources in Dante (1265-1321); La Divina Commedia: Inferno

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Primary Subject Work: La Compagnia dei Celestini (1992);

Genre: novel;

Subject Terms:

treatment of prophecy; compared to Flaiano, Ennio (1910-1972): 'La felice città dei ladri'; Serra, Michele (1954- ): Il nuovo che avanza (1989); Orwell, George (1903-1950): 1984 (1949); sources in Dante (1265-1321); La Divina Commedia: Inferno

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: English

Update Code: 199901

Sequence Numbers: 1999-1-6495; 1999-2-11861

Accession Number:

1999046841

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Record: 14

Title:

Verso il nuovo millennio: Rappresentazione dell'apocalisse nella narrativa italiana contemporanea (Benni, Busi, Vassalli)

Author(s):

Jansen, Monica

Source:

Narrativa (NarrativaP) 2001 June; 20-21: 131-50. [Journal Detail]

Peer Reviewed:

No

ISSN:

1166-3243

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Primary Subject Work: La Compagnia dei Celestini (1992);

Genre: novel;

Subject Terms:

treatment of the apocalypse; compared to Busi, Aldo (1948- ): Madre Asdrubala (1995); Vassalli, Sebastiano: 3012: L'anno del profeta

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: Italian

Update Code: 200101

Sequence Numbers: 2001-2-10292

Accession Number:

2001461670

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Record: 15

Title:

When You Are Truly in Love

Author(s):

Davidson, Chad (translator and introd.); Feltrin-Morris, Marella (translator and introd.)

Source:

Two Lines 2004;; 58-64.

ISSN:

1525-5204

General Subject Areas:

Subject Literature: Italian literature;

Period: 1900-1999;

Primary Subject Author: Benni, Stefano (1947- );

Primary Subject Work: 'Quando si ama davvero';

Genre: short story;

Subject Terms:

English language translation

Document Information:

Publication Type: journal article

Language of Publication: English

Update Code: 200601

Sequence Numbers: 2006-2-11805

Accession Number:

2006297216

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