Abstract
In the winter issue of the Dublin Review, Niamh Cullen writes about Darina Laracy, a young Irishwoman who moved to Italy on the eve of the Second World War and worked as a journalist there. Drawing on letters and archival documents, Cullen traces how Darina weathered an attempt by the Gestapo to recruit her as a spy, the death of her fiancé (which she believed was murder), and her eventual expulsion into the shadowy wartime world of Switzerland. There she met her future husband, the famous Italian leftist novelist Ignazio Silone – whose own shocking choices in the early years of fascism were revealed when Darina was an old woman. Gripping and revelatory, Cullen’s essay vividly brings to life a fascinating figure and shows how she tried to shape the narrative of her own life – both in the war years and decades later.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 77-92 |
Number of pages | 15 |
Journal | The Dublin Review |
Volume | 93 |
Issue number | Winter 2023-2024 |
Publication status | Published - 15 Dec 2023 |
Keywords
- Darina Laracy, Ignazio Silone, fascism, antifascism, Italy