Francesco Ottonello The surrealistic rapture of Ganymede’s myth by Alberto Savinio

Ganymede, a figure from classical mythology, is traditionally portrayed as a beautiful youth symbolizing the convergence of divine interaction with eros, beauty, and immortality. Alberto Savinio (1891-1952), an Italian surrealist writer born in Athens and the younger brother of the metaphysical painter Giorgio de Chirico, reinterpreted classical themes in his works. In 1920, Savinio completed "Tragedia dell’infanzia" (Tragedy of Childhood; finally published in 1937), a collection of tales exploring the disconnect between adult and child perceptions. Childhood, for Savinio, became a metaphysical, fairy-tale-like realm imbued with the dazzling light of Greek myth and archetypes. Savinio’s work distorts both time and Greek mythology, echoing aspects of De Chirico’s paintings. Particularly intriguing is Savinio’s treatment of the Ganymede myth. In one surreal childhood tale set in a theater, the young boy is metamorphosed into a femme fatale. At the Lanarà theater, a scene unfolds where a captivating yet unsettling woman is mysteriously abducted, resembling a surreal and inverted depiction of Ganymede’s abduction, where the passive victim becomes the active predator. Unlike the traditional eagle, the creature in this uncanny scene, described as 'inhuman' or monstrous, is a gentler and more colourful heron. Here, the woman, embodying Ganymede, is ensnared by a vibrant bird on stage, while in reality, she absconds with Savinio’s childhood friend Cimone. In conclusion, this presentation will examine Savinio’s modernist reworking of the Ganymede myth in "Tragedia dell’infanzia," emphasizing its modernistic traits. Through surreal and dreamlike reimagining of mythological characters, Savinio ruptured conventional narratives, offering a distorted yet profoundly personal portrayal of an ancient myth.

Francesco Ottonello is a PhD candidate in Transcultural Studies in Humanities and a lecturer in Italian Literature at the University of Bergamo. In 2022, he was a visiting scholar at KU Leuven. His project focuses on the reception of the Greek mythological figure Ganymede in Classical and Italian literature. He has published the books “Pasolini traduttore di Eschilo. L'Orestiade” (Grin Verlag, 2018) and “Franco Buffoni un classico contemporaneo. Eros, scientia, traduzione” (Pensa MultiMedia, 2022; Forum Traiani National Award 2023). He has participated in various international conferences at the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford, Aix-Marseille, Gent, KU Leuven, Milan, Trento, Perugia, Siena, Naples L'Orientale, He also coordinated the conference 'Pasolini e il suo mito. Tradizione letteraria e metamorfosi intermediali' (Università di Bergamo, 15-16 December 2022). His research interests include Modernism, Classical Reception, Myth Reception in Italian Literature, Translation Studies, Contemporary Poetry, Island Studies, Queer and Sexuality Studies.