Family Life

About the Images

The following citations are for the images shown above, left to right, illustrating books and other works included in the exhibit “Italian Life Under Fascism” in the Department of Special Collections in 1998.

1. Cuor d’Oro. Turin, 1924 and 1925.
   • Designed for young people, Heart of Gold contains a predictable mix of inspirational short stories, cartoons, and miscellaneous educational materials. It was founded the year Mussolini came to power
2. La Domenica del Corriere. Milan, 8 January 1928.
   • An illustrated Sunday supplement to the daily Corriere della Sera, addressing world events and aimed at the general public. Curiously, this issue highlights a tug of war in icy waters by students of Villanova University in Pennsylvania.
3. La Domenica. Milan, 4 April 1937.
4. Le Carnet Mondain. Rivista Illustrata del Corpo Diplomatico e del Mondo Cosmopolita. Rome, August – September 1935, October 1935, and November 1937.
   • Three issues of a large, pretentious monthly publication devoted to the activities of the diplomatic corps and high society and showing a strong interest in fashion.
5. Rivista delle Famiglie. Milan, June 1936.
   • Although this purports to be a monthly magazine dedicated to the women of the family, it consists mainly of speeches by Mussolini and other Fascist-related articles. A central photographic section is devoted to recent Italian conquests in Africa.

Additional Exhibit Items

The following items were part of the original exhibit in the Department of Special Collections but are not pictured above.

• Riccardo Korherr. Regresso delle Nascite: Morte dei Popoli. Prefaces by Oswald Spengler and Benito Mussolini. Rome: Libreria del Littorio, 1928.
  • The drive to increase the population figured prominently in Mussolini’s agenda, and large families were rewarded by the regime: quoting Hegel, “he who is not a father is not a man.”
• Pro Famiglia. Milan, 1933 and 1938.
  • The Fascist party encouraged the development of large families, here through articles and photographs extolling family life.
• Il Gazzettino Illustrato. Venice, 25 February 1934.
• Il Mattino Illustrato. Naples, 29 August – 5 September 1938.
  • These Sunday supplements for weekly journals and newspapers feature photos, news, and cartoons ranging from politics to religion to fashion, presumably of interest to the entire family. They also work to enhance the image of the regime and underscore its diplomatic and military achievements.
• Giulio Scafati, ed. L’Orto di Guerra. Bologna: L’Ufficio Propaganda del P.N.F., 1941.
  • Illustrated book emphasizing the importance of privately cultivated vegetable gardens with instructions for establishing, maintaining, and harvesting their products for the war effort.
• Sveglia. Milan, 25 October 1944.
  • An important Fascist newspaper published thrice weekly for Italian military men and their families. The lead article discusses the “heroism” and “discipline” of the Japanese soldier, who is fighting for ideals similar to those of the Fascists.