The Modern Novel

Biography

Giuseppe Berto was born in 1914 in Mogliano Veneto. After graduating from high school, he joined the army and was involved in some of Mussolini’s African campaigns. He then enrolled at the University of Padua to study literature. He again joined the army at the start of the Second World War and again went to Africa. He was captured by the Allies and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp in Hereford, Texas, where he met the painter Alberto Burri and the writer and journalist Gaetano Tumiati. He also started to write his first book – Il cielo è rosso (The Sky is Red) – published in 1946. This book was a considerable success and was even praised by Ernest Hemingway.

However, his subsequent works had less success. Moreover, the critical establishment dubbed him as a fascist, which led to his being ostracised. This ostracism and his lack of success as a cinema screenwriter made him profoundly depressed. His subsequent psychiatric treatment led to his most successful book, Il Male Oscuro (Incubus), which he started writing at the suggestion of his analyst and which dealt with many of his personal demons, including his relationship with his father. He died in 1978.

Books about Giuseppe Berto

Dario Biagi: Vita scandalosa di Giuseppe Berto (in Italian)

Other links

Giuseppe Berto
Giuseppe Berto (in Italian)
Biografia Giuseppe Berto (in Italian)
Giuseppe Berto (1914-1978) (in Italian)
Biografia (in Italian)