Giuseppe Conte, Ricordiamoci dell’11 settembre

The present extract, made of fifteen lines, is taken from the poem Il Fuoco che produce luce e fumo, and it is about the 09/11 attack’s massacre, in which were killed nearly three thousand people.

The extract can be divided into two parts:

• In the first part (lines 1-10), it is presented the scenario of destruction after the attack;
• In the second part( lines 11-15), there is an exhortation to remember the attack through prayer.

At line two, the assonance between “fuoco” and “fulmineo” highlights fire’s destructive power.

In addition to that, the juxtaposition of “carburante - carne” and of “sangue – material cerebrale” underlines the destruction caused by the crash of the two airplanes on the World Trade Center (“si è fatta subito fumo grigio, mortale, che si espandeva e cancellava”).

In conclusion, the antithesis between “Inferi” ( line 10) and “Dio”, oxymoronic juxtaposed with the adjective “assassin” at line 13, recalls the antithesis between the destruction and the innocence of a baby that smiles (“un Dio assassin che ci sorrida bambino”).

Mario Luzi, Desiderio di Pace

The present extract, made of twelve lines, is taken from the second part of the poem 11 settembre, and it has the same theme of Conte’s poem, but it also exhort to hope for future justice thank to an intense religious sense.

The extract can be divided into two parts:

• In the first part, it is presented scenario of destruction after the 09/11 attack;
• In the second part, there is an exhortation to the Twin Towers to rise again as lilies.

Since the starting lines, the juxtaposition of “frenesia” and “morte”, and the one of “estremo” and “affronto” underline the affront’s magnitude suffered by the United States.

In addition to that, the ethnic groups’ list written in lines three and four (“l’arabo, l’ebreo, il cristiano, l’indio”) highlights the common suffering due to the attack.

Moreover, the speaking voice’s exhortation to the Twin Towers to rise again is underlined by the expression “fasti” and the repetition of the verb “risorgete” at line eight.

In conclusion, the exhortation is legitimated  by the noun “gigli”, which recalls purity and innocence, and by the repetition of “pace – pace vera” at line twelve.