Body and Identity in 20th-Century Italian Literature: Primo Levi

The 20th-century Italian literature offers new interpretations of long-standing concepts. Such is the case of the body. It can be associated with the individual’s presence, assertion and affirmation in society. At the same time, the body is related to the concept of identity. It has different aspects that are explored in this study. Finally, the paper analyzes Primo Levi’s novel If This Is a Man in order to answer the research question of what the role of identity is in the formation of the body, respectively the personality. The novel raises questions related to the collective’s construction and to the individual’s preservation. The author proposes an interpretation of the stages through which the body goes – from its appearance through the personality’s constitution to the attempt to erase it.