Matthew McGill

Honors English 10

18 October 2016

In this article De Lauretis analyzes Calvinos novel and compares it in relation to one of his older

short stories. As she opens she describes Calvinos short story The Adventures of a Traveler by talking

about how it focuses on what a relationship would be like in that day with the man in charge and the

women doing what the man tells her to do. She then uses this basis to describe Calvino's current story If

on a Winter's Night a Traveler and how the story follows the same storyline as the older one except that

the main women is a hero to. She finishes by describing how this is what a happy relationship should be

with both the man and the woman having equal roles.

Reading this article adds an interesting perspective by comparing literature with history. Even so,

using this article as research for a project may be difficult since it feels more like an opinion without any

clear facts. But, this article still may prove useful to classrooms and opening up a group discussion since

it shares many ideas that people could either agree or disagree with.

Feinstein, Wiley The Doctrinal Core of If on a Winters Night a Traveler 1989, Literature Resources,

Ottawa: Dovehouse http://bit.ly/2fJW7j6

Feinstein's article analyzes the last three chapters of Italo Calvinos story and how the end

justifies the beginning. He also relates the story back to the author in a personal way by relating the

characters to Calvinos real life. He does this by mentioning characters like Silas Flannery who is a writer

in the story who is suffering from severe writer's block, which relates to Calvino since in the beginning he

stated he hasnt written a book in seven years which suggests he is suffering from writer's block. He then
continues on to relate other events of Calvinos life concluding that this story is simply a mask Calvino is

hiding behind in order to tell the story of his life.

Reading this article might prove great insight to readers hoping to get a closer look at the insides

of Calvinos life. It might also help students who are looking at Calvinos life and are interested about

some of the creative processes used in writing stories. Overall this article brings an interesting

perspective, but at the same time might seem useless to schools and students who just want to learn the

basics of the novel.

Pilz, Kerstin Italo Calvino: An Author between Modernity and Postmodernity 2007, Blooms

Literature, Detroit: Gale http://bit.ly/2fi6KX9

Pilz article offers an insightful look into the stories of Italo Calvino and how they relate to what

was happening in society at that time in order to see what changes he made to the world, He starts off by

talking about how even though Calvino wrote about science at that time, this was a while ago so some

information in his story might not be entirely correct It then compares each story with what the deeper

meaning of the story was and what Calvino was trying to tell his audience. In the concluding paragraph

the author talks about the life of Italo Calvino and his suffering, which the author states might have

helped him with the writing of his stories.

This is an interesting thought-provoking essay that may come in use in some places better than

others. Due to the length it does take some time to read and it does cover many sections which one will

most likely not need in a simple project. Even so, since the article is separated into different sections

based on Calvino's books it would be quite simple for someone to read one part based on what they are

interested in. This article also uses clear evidence for its reasons which may be helpful for students and

adults who are hoping to use this article for teaching or hope to support their writing with evidence.
Vidal, Gore On Italo Calvino 1986, Blooms Literature, Literature Resource Center

http://bit.ly/2frtogg

Vidal article offers readers interested in Calvinos life a fascinating new perspective based

on interviews and opinions about what has happened to Calvino during his lifetime. The article has

a strange opening describing Calvinos funeral along with how Vidal felt while he attended this

gathering. He then describes the last time he saw Calvino which was only a few weeks before and

how he felt as he slowly became friends with and learned more about Calvino. He then closes by

mentioning how Calvino can be truly happy and at peace now as he rests and becomes one with

nature.

This article offers an interesting perspective about Calvino's life since Vidal was actually

friends with him. Because of this readers who are fans of Calvino may find this exciting since they

can learn more about one of their favorite authors but, in a learning environment this might prove

less useful since it includes more backstories about their friendship and less about Calvino's life.

Reading this article felt more like reading a diary entry about someone meeting Calvino than an

actually formal biography about him.

Weiss, Beno Calvinos Ultimate Hyper Novel: If on a Winters Night a Traveler 1993, Literature

Resources, Farmington Hills, Michigan, Literature Resource Center http://bit.ly/2fHsuzC

This article begins with Weiss talking about multiple universes and how Calvino successfully

incorporated this into his novel. He then continues to explain the story and how Calvino brilliantly

combined multiple universes and stories into one and add his own special twist. As Weiss continues he

talks about the different sound devices used in the novel and the different characters and how they have a
hidden meaning. He finished by relating one of the main characters to the reader stating how being in

suspense and not knowing what's going to happen in a story is what makes it fun to read.

Weiss mainly uses this article to explain what Calvino meant when he wrote this story while also

adding small comments in between about how this makes Calvino such a great writer. This makes the

article feel rather one sided which may be confusing for people who just want to understand Calvino's

story without all the added praise. Even so this article may still prove useful to people who didnt

understand what happened in the story and hope to gain deeper insight about the novel.

Wood, Michael If on a winter's night a theorist March 2009, Columbia University, Bloom's

Literature, http://www.columbia.edu/cu/french/romanicreview/

In this article Michael Wood talks about the author of this story Italo Calvino and how he

believes this story is evidence that Calvino is a theorist but not in a metaphorical way. Wood says

that Calvino is a theorist because of the way that he tricks readers into thinking one thing with his

story when it turns out to be completely different. He uses another article along the way as evidence

but one of his main points is how Calvino always starts the stories but doesn't finish them. In this

way he is giving the reader part of a story to read but, just enough that the reader craves more

when there isn't any.

Wood brings an interesting new perspective to the story which could prove helpful to

classrooms. Being a writer himself and the quotes he uses give enough evidence to support his

theory which can help readers fully immerse themselves in this reading. The complicated language

may bring around some difficulty to readers but, having a discussion after reading may help bring

new light to the subject.