Gradation of distinctive features of the literature ofthe exodus in the novel La zaratina by Silvio Testa

The Italian literature of exile, pervaded by a bitter feeling of memories, has been enriched by another literary memory - Silvio Testa’s novel La zaratina, tragedy of Dalmatian exile. This consonant literature about the distinctive elements of Italianity - Romanity of Dalmatia - finds in Testa’s book a significant reinforcement of those elements and symbols, presented in almost all works of fiction and non-fiction dealing with the tragedy of the exile of Italians and other populations from the eastern coast of the Adriatic. The aim of this analysis is to detect and present the new contribution Silvio Testa offers to the memorial landscape of this traumatic historical experience - particularly through his depiction of the massacre and destruction of Zadar (Zara), caused by Anglo-American bombardments during World War II. Through the intimate and multi-generational portrait of the Italian family of the protagonist Bepi (Giuseppe), Testa elevates Zadar - nicknamed “the Adriatic Dresden” - into a literary monument: a testament to human survival, a symbol of the enduring vitality of its people, and of the solidarity that once existed between Italians and Croats, all immersed in the brutality of war. Testa’s novel is an exceptional contribution to the realist-naturalistic strand of Italian exile literature. The narrative moves beyond political or ideological accounts to construct a cubist mosaic of memory, trauma, and identity. At its core lies the deep pain of the disintegration of a multiethnic coexistence in Zadar - a city where Italians and Slavs once shared churches, schools, and family ties. Testa identifies nationalism, religion, and ideology as the three poisonous forces that shattered this balance. These motifs are not simply abstract ideas but are manifested through a wide range of emotionally charged and historically grounded episodes in the novel. The characters of Luigi, Daria, and Ivo offer insight into how personal identities and relationships were destroyed by political and ethnic divisions. Ivo, in particular, embodies the complex fluidity of Dalmatian identity: born an Austrian subject, raised with Italian culture, and of Croatian descent, his very being is rendered suspicious in a world divided into rigid national categories. When stopped by Yugoslav partisans and accused of fraternizing with Italians, Ivo understands that his deeply rooted ties to Zadar’s Italian community are no longer understandable to outsiders. His inner turmoil becomes emblematic of the cultural loss experienced by many Dalmatians. The novel also pays close attention to emotional and symbolic landscapes. Even in rare moments of physical pleasure, such as an erotic scene between Luigi and Daria, the mood is eclipsed by a looming sense of separation and despair. This episode illustrates Testa’s ability to merge intimacy and tragedy, making the body itself a battlefield of exile. An essential narrative device in the novel is the meticulous naming of real people and historically verifiable events. The autor of the article, himself born in Zadar during the bombings, confirms personal knowledge of many figures in the novel - such as Ivo and Sergio Nežić, or the partisan Obrad Egić - thereby blurring the boundary between literature and testimony. These elements add documentary weight to the story and deepen the realism that defines the novel’s contribution to the memorialization of the exodus. One of the most memorable figures in the novel is Ivaniza, a young maid from the island of Ugljan. Far from being a secondary character, she emerges as a moral compass and savior figure - risking her life to help Luigi and others. Ivaniza becomes a secular symbol of providence, akin to characters from Manzoni’s The Betrothed, silently ensuring the family’s survival amidst collapse. Her inclusion as a central character also reflects Testa’s egalitarian vision of heroism and dignity during wartime. In one of the darkest scenes of the novel, Daria is shown a bag containing human eyeballs by a group of partisans - a horrifying moment that unmistakably recalls Curzio Malaparte’s Kaputt, particularly the scene where Ante Pavelić is presented with a basket of Serbian eyes by his Ustaše followers. This intertextual echo links Testa’s work to a broader tradition of European literature that denounces wartime atrocities, while grounding the horror in the specific context of Zadar. The ultimate emotional and symbolic weight of the novel rests with Daria and her relationship to music, particularly the piano. In pre-exile Zadar, her piano was a source of self-expression and identity. After the family’s displacement, Daria clings to this artistic anchor - at one point drawing a keyboard on wood just to “play.” But by the end, the piano becomes a metaphor of emotional death. In a climactic scene in Venice, Daria breaks down at the instrument, crying silently as her fingers produce a dissonant, painful sound. She closes the lid as if closing the chapter of her life connected to Zadar. Her final gesture of turning her back on the piano reflects a complete internal collapse, the psychological endpoint of exile. Through Daria’s grief, Testa communicates a collective pain. She becomes a pars pro toto, representing all exiles - people from Zadar, Dalmatia, and beyond - whose spiritual devastation parallels the destruction of their cities. The novel’s closing pages form a threnody for Zadar, a dirge for a world that no longer exists, leaving only scars and muted songs. In conclusion, La zaratina stands as a masterful literary and historical contribution to the memory of the Italian exodus. With emotional precision, historical veracity, and a powerful sense of place and identity, Silvio Testa offers a unique reinforcement of the symbolic, cultural, and human elements that have shaped the literature of Dalmatian and Julian exile. His novel joins the canon of this literature not as an imitation, but as a deeply personal, stylistically rich, and morally profound work - one that reminds us how loss of homeland is not just a historical fact but a wound that sings, cries, and remembers.