Based on the records of a murder trial that transfixed all of Italy in the late 1870s, this study makes use of a dramatic court case to develop a new paradigm for the history of emotions - the 'emotional arena'. Set in the decade following Italian unification, the context was one of notable cultural variety. An as-yet unexplored aspect of this was that the experience and expression of emotions were as variable as the regions making up the new nation. Through a close examination of the spaces in which daily lives, loves, and deaths unfolded - from marital homes to places of socializing and entertainment, to a Roman court room - Mark Seymour explores the way social 'arenas' are crucial to the historical development of emotional cultural rules. The narrative is driven by the failed marriage of a decorated but allegedly impotent Risorgimento soldier, his wife's scandalous affair with a virile circus artiste (who had a string of previous lovers), and the illicit new couple's murder of the hapless husband. Hundreds of witnesses - from local professionals to servants and even circus clowns - interviewed across the length and breadth of the peninsula, left their personal views on marriage, sexuality, and infidelity. These provide an extraordinary series of peepholes into little-known areas of the new nation's social fabric. A careful yet imaginative reading of the prosecution records, as well as contemporary newspaper coverage, allows reconstruction of the highly emotional experiences of all those touched by this extraordinary story. The result is a classic Italian micro-history with relevance for today's emotionally volatile times.

About the Author
Mark Seymour was born in London but moved to Sydney, Australia, as a teenager. He completed a BA (Honours) in history at the University of Sydney before postgraduate work in Italian history at the University of Connecticut, USA. He taught at two US universities in Rome for some years while researching his PhD thesis. After receiving his doctorate, he moved back to the southern hemisphere to take up an academic appointment at the University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand, in 2004. He has published a range of journal articles and chapters, as well as several co-edited volumes, and he was co-editor of the journal Modern Italy, 2015-2020.


Book Information
ISBN 9780198743590
Author Mark Seymour
Format Hardback
Page Count 256
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 546g
Dimensions(mm) 232mm * 161mm * 22mm