The Pike: Gabriele D'Annunzio, Poet, Seducer and Preacher of WarLucy Hughes-Hallett
Taschenbuch
Winner of the Samuel Johnson Prize for non-fiction 2013. The Pike is the story of Gabriele D' Annunzio, poet, daredevil - and Fascist. In September 1919 Gabriele D' Annunzio, successful poet and occasional politician, declared himself Commandante of the city of Fiume in modern day Croatia. His intention - to establish a utopia based on his fascist and artistic ideals. It was the dramatic pinnacle to an outrageous career. Lucy Hughes-Hallett charts the controversial life of D' Annunzio, the debauched artist who became a national hero. His evolution from idealist Romantic to radical right-wing revolutionary is a political parable. Through his ideological journey, culminating in the failure of the Fiume endeavour, we witness the political turbulence of early 20th century Europe and the emergence of fascism. In ' The Pike', Hughes-Hallett addresses the cult of nationalism and the origins of political extremism - and at the centre of the book stands the charismatic D' Annunzio: a figure as deplorable as he is fascinating.
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