Tommaso Fiore (7 March 1884 – 4 June 1973) was an Italian

meridionalist Meridionalism () is the study and research of the economical and social issues of Southern Italy. It started in the 19th century, after the annexation of the former Kingdom of the Two Sicilies during the process of Italian unification, and conti ...

writer and a

socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

intellectual and politician. He is known for his attention and his descriptions and studies on the inhumane conditions of Southern Italian and often specifically

Apulian Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian name Puglia (), is a region of Italy, located in the southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Otranto and Ionian Sea to the southeast and the Gulf ...

peasants at that time. He is also known for his

Viareggio Prize The Viareggio Prize ( or ) is an Italian literature, literary prize, first awarded in 1930. Named after the Tuscany, Tuscan city of Viareggio, it was conceived by three friends, , Carlo Salsa and Leonida Repaci, to rival the Milanese Bagutta Priz ...

-winning book ''Un popolo di formiche'' ("A people of ants"). In the 1920s, he was appointed as mayor () of his hometown

Altamura Altamura (; ; ) is a town and ''comune'' of Apulia, in southern Italy. It is located on one of the hills of the Altopiano delle Murge, Murge plateau in the Metropolitan City of Bari, southwest of Bari, close to the border with Basilicata. , i ...

. During the twenty-year period of the

Italian Fascist Italian fascism (), also called classical fascism and Fascism, is the original fascist ideology, which Giovanni Gentile and Benito Mussolini developed in Italy. The ideology of Italian fascism is associated with a series of political parties le ...

era, he strenuously opposed the regime before being sent into internal exile in 1942 and then being jailed in 1943.

Life

Tommaso Fiore was born in a working-class family on 7 March 1884. After completing higher education in a seminary school located in

Conversano Conversano (Bari dialect, Barese: ) is an ancient town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bari, Apulia, south-eastern Italy. It is southeast of Bari and from the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coast, at above sea level. The counts of Conversan ...

(as it was normal at that time for gifted students who couldn't afford public high schools), he studied

classical literature Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek and Roman literature and their original languages, ...

at university and then he taught inside Italian

classical lyceum The ''liceo classico'' or ''ginnasio'' () is the oldest public secondary school type in Italy. Its educational curriculum spans over five years, when students are generally about 14 to 19 years of age. Until 1969, this was the only secondar ...

schools. His interests were mostly focused on the poverty of

Southern Italy Southern Italy (, , or , ; ; ), also known as () or (; ; ; ), is a macroregion of Italy consisting of its southern Regions of Italy, regions. The term "" today mostly refers to the regions that are associated with the people, lands or cultu ...

's peasants and he struggled with his thoughts to find a solution to Southern Italy's economic failure (in Italian such scholars are called ). He was also a strenuous socialist and he always fought for the Independence and

federalism Federalism is a mode of government that combines a general level of government (a central or federal government) with a regional level of sub-unit governments (e.g., provinces, State (sub-national), states, Canton (administrative division), ca ...

of Southern Italy. He also studied poverty and other issues related to Southern Italy's peasants. In the 1920s he became mayor of

, his hometown and he was a courageous opponent of fascism. He was sent into internal exile in 1942 and then jailed in 1943 because of his intense propaganda against fascism. On 19 August 1909, he also joined the

Italian Freemasonry Freemasonry in Italy () dates to the first half of the eighteenth century. Its success largely depended on the lack of enthusiasm with which Papal bans on the order were enforced in the various states. After the end of the Napoleonic regime, Freem ...

and he was appointed to the

Masonic lodge A Masonic lodge (also called Freemasons' lodge, or private lodge or constituent lodge) is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also a commonly used term for a building where Freemasons meet and hold their meetings. Every new l ...

number 1799 located in Altamura. On 7 February 1915, he was appointed as

Master Mason Freemasonry (sometimes spelled Free-Masonry) consists of fraternal groups that trace their origins to the medieval guilds of stonemasons. Freemasonry is the oldest secular fraternity in the world and among the oldest still-existing organizati ...

. gnocchini-2005, p. 123 He collaborated with the Italian newspaper ''La Rivoluzione liberale'' whose

chief editor An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's Editing, editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is hel ...

was

Piero Gobetti Piero Gobetti (; 19 June 1901 – 15 February 1926) was an Italian journalist, intellectual, and anti-fascist. A radical and revolutionary liberal, he was an exceptionally active campaigner and critic in the crisis years in Italy after the Fir ...

, and with the newspaper ''Quarto Stato'' founded by

Pietro Nenni Pietro Sandro Nenni (; 9 February 1891 – 1 January 1980) was an Italian socialist politician and statesman, the national secretary of the Italian Socialist Party (PSI) and senator for life since 1970. He was a recipient of the Lenin Peace Priz ...

and

Carlo Rosselli Carlo Alberto Rosselli (16 November 18999 June 1937) was an Italian political leader, journalist, historian, philosopher and anti-fascist activist, first in Italy and then abroad. He developed a theory of reformist, non-Marxist socialism inspir ...

, where he explained his ideas about socialist reformation of Southern Italy. On 28 July 1943, he lost his son Graziano in the massacre of ''via Niccolò dell'Arca'', in

Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...

, carried out by fascists. In the aftermath of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was appointed as

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

grammar and literature teacher at the

University of Bari The University of Bari Aldo Moro () is a public higher education institution founded in 1925 in Bari, Apulia, in Southern Italy. The university has a student population of around 40,000. A recent name change refers to the statesman and prime mi ...

, where he also became ''Provveditore degli Studi'' ("Superintendent of Studies"). In 1952, his book ''Un popolo di formiche'' (which means "a people of ants") won the prestigious

Works

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References

Bibliography

External links

Exhibition of documents and photographs, by
Altamuran association ''Il circolo delle formiche'' * ''Parco Letterari
Formiche di Puglia
' dedicated to Tommaso Fiore {{DEFAULTSORT:Fiore, Tommaso 1884 births 1973 deaths Italian Freemasons Italian socialists Italian male writers Mayors of places in Apulia People from Altamura Viareggio Prize winners

Life

Works

See also

References

Bibliography

External links