SOURCE: “Manzoni on the Italian Left,” in Annali d'Italianistica, Vol. 3, 1985, pp. 97-110.

In the following essay, Dombroski considers the ideological character of Manzoni's I promessi sposi, particularly as the novel's concerns with social class have been perceived by Marxist critics.

A number of themes emerge in the history of Manzoni criticism which enable us to define a nucleus of problems that have a special relevance for the practical concerns of the political Left. By far the most important of these problems, historically speaking, regards Manzoni's attitude toward the popular masses. Much of the work of Italian Marxists on Manzoni consists of showing how the representation of social reality in I promessi sposi determines the ideological completeness of Manzoni's narrative system, and within this social reality the place of the humble believer is no doubt of crucial importance. The canonical text on this issue is Gramsci's. His notes have...