Italo Svevo
La Coscienza Di Zeno

"Zeno's Conscience" is the third novel by Italo Svevo (a pseudonym for Aron Hector Schmitz), published in 1923. Set in Trieste, the author's hometown, the work presents itself as the autobiography of Zeno Cosini, written on the advice of his psychoanalyst, the elusive Dr. S. (an abbreviation for Svevo? Who knows!), who also writes the preface to the book, declaring he is publishing it "out of revenge," given that Zeno had stopped his treatment. This introduction is followed by a very brief preamble, which in turn is followed by the first of the five main chapters of the work, called "Smoking". In it, Zeno describes his relationship with cigarettes, a love-hate relationship: a thousand times he tries to quit smoking, and a thousand times he fails. The second chapter ("The Death of My Father") indeed narrates the last period of Zeno's father's life: even the relationship with his parent is one of love and hate, although from the moment the elderly man is on his deathbed, Zeno will feel a strong affection that binds him to his father, an affection that he will reconnect with in his memory throughout his life.

The third chapter ("The Story of My Marriage") presents the events that bring Zeno closer to the Malfenti family: he falls in love with Ada, the daughter of the head of the family, Giovanni, but after many attempts (none of which are successful), he decides to marry her sister Augusta, who loved him unrequitedly. In "Wife and Mistress", Zeno's marriage to Augusta Malfenti is analyzed, especially his relationship with his mistress Carla Gerco, a young woman with great singing talent. Finally, in "Story of a Business Partnership", the protagonist narrates the misadventures he encounters while working as an accountant in Guido Speier's commercial partnership, Ada's husband and Zeno's close friend, who initially hated him for taking away the woman he once loved. Guido lacks talent in commerce, and the business goes from disaster to disaster, in a negative escalation that culminates in the unexpected chapter finale.

Set in 1915-16, the eighth paragraph ("Psychoanalysis") can be considered a sort of conclusion to the work: time has passed, Zeno has aged, he has finally quit smoking and does not realize in time the danger of the war, which has also come to Italy and will have devastating consequences in the Trieste area. The last sentences of the novel are of moving yet disturbing drama; Italo Svevo, through Zeno's mouth, predicts the atomic war that soon risks becoming reality: "Perhaps through an unheard-of catastrophe produced by devices we will return to health. When poisonous gases are no longer enough, a man made like all others, in the secrecy of a room in this world, will invent an incomparable explosive, compared to which the explosives currently existing will be considered as harmless toys."

"Zeno's Conscience" is considered to be one of the greatest psychological novels of the early 20th century. Despite its belonging to the genre, it differs from other examples of psychological novels (for instance, Pirandello's "The Late Mattia Pascal") due to a lack of static nature. Psychological introspection is what unites all the chapters of Svevo's book, but it does not appear as the main subject as in Pirandello. Only in the last chapter does this element become the absolute protagonist, then leading to the terrible prophecy of which I quoted an excerpt. Svevo's is ultimately a psychological novel, but this adjective is not synonymous with heaviness, as many have claimed, but on the contrary, it is what characterizes a perfect work in every aspect, from the author's refined writing style to the setting.

Finally, it is impossible not to highlight the intense contrast between love and hate present in the book; these are the two feelings that the protagonist experiences simultaneously for all the situations and people he narrates: from this, one deduces the modernity of Svevo, a writer immersed in his time, with the typical dilemmas of a twentieth-century man, with no more reference points, who looks around bewilderedly, seeking salvation and healing within himself.

An engaging work, yes, but essential. And sublime.