PROGETTO COMENIUS
«UNITY IN THE DIVERSITY»
2012 - 2014
A journey through the
Mediterranean civilization from its
origins to the present day
through celebrities:
visible traces of art and culture.
The Odissey is the story of the troubled hero while returning to his home town at the end
of the Trojan War. Odysseus (Ulisses) wants to return home but without abandoning the
idea of experience and knowledge, he can have during his adventurous trip, and this
shows a great similarity to the modern man.
I am Odysseus Laertes, for all the tricks
I am known among men, and my fame goes to the heaven.
I live in Ithaca aprica [...] and I will never see nothing
sweeter than my land.
Because nothing is sweeter than our own country and our fathers,
even if someone lives in a very rich house, but in a foreign land,
far away from his family.
[Odyssey, IX, vv. 21-46]
Ulysses in Dante's Comedy
In the Twenty-sixth canto of Dante’s “Inferno” Ulysses is condemned
to eternal suffering, in the pit of the fraud chancellors because of his
continuous tricks. In fact, the speech with which he persuades his
companions to overcome the Pillars of Hercules, is made on the
grounds of knowledge that, for Ulysses, is a goal to be pursued at all
costs:
'Oh brothers! I said, that for hundred thousand
dangers you have come to the West,
to our little senses which don’t want to deny the new
experiences,
what is back to the sun, what is the inhabited world.
Consider your origin!....
….You were not born to live like brutes,
but to follow virtue and knowledge!.'
Dedalus and the attraction of flying
The man’s desire to overcome his limits and not to be stopped by difficulties is already
known in the myth of Dedalus and Icarus.
Dedalus is in fact the ingenious father who cannot resist the allure of the flight, the
temptation to free through the air like a winged creature.
The myth says that Dedalus, tired of
the hateful prison wanted to escape at
any cost. “Let Minos obstacle on me
the ways of earth and water,but at
least the sky will be always open.He
will be the master of everything but
air!” So Dedalus built for himself and
his son two pairs of wings woven of
light feathers; attacked with wax to
Iracus’s shoulders and arms and also
fixed them at his back. Then, turning
to the boy, said: ‘’Follow me Icarus!
And do not be afraid, have only care to
stay with me like birth just out of the
nest.”
Scylla and Charybdis
In the ancient times, the two rocks located between peninsular Italy and Sicily overlooking the Strait of
Messina, were known as dangerous to navigation since two terrible monsters called by those names
lived there. Scilla,who lived on a cliff near Reggio Calabria, was thought to have twelve feet and six
long necks topped with as many heads; in each of the six mouths she had three rows of teeth and
barked like a dog. Charybdis on the Sicilian coast, was stayed invisible under a tall fig tree. Three times
a day, he used to swallow the waters of the strait and the he throw them back to the sea.
Odissea, XII
L'altro scoglio, più basso tu lo vedrai, Odisseo,
vicini uno all'altro,
dall'uno potresti colpir l'altro di freccia.
Su questo c'è un fico grande, ricco di foglie;
e sotto Cariddi gloriosamente l'acqua livida assorbe.
Tre volte al giorno la vomita e tre la riassorbe
paurosamente. Ah, che tu non sia là quando riassorbe.
Odissea, XII
Scilla ivi alberga, che moleste grida
Di mandar non ristà. La costei voce
Altro non par che un guaiolar perenne
Di lattante cagnuol: ma Scilla è atroce
Mostro, e sino a un dio, che a lei si fesse,
Non mirerebbe in lei senza ribrezzo,
Dodici ha piedi, anteriori tutti,
Sei lunghissimi colli e su ciascuno
Spaventosa una testa, e nelle bocche
Di spessi denti un triplicato giro,
E la morte più amara di ogni dente.
Omero
Marco Polo
Considered one of the the greatest travellers of all times, Marco Polo
influenced many generations of travellers who went on search of new
lands and knowledge. He was one of the few travellers who wrote
about what he had seen and heard during his long trips, famous the
mythical voyage to the Silk Route .
Marco Polo, (1254-1324)
He surpassed all the other travellers in
determination, writing and influence. His
voyage through Asia lasted a total of 24
years; During his travels he was so able to
enter in strict contact with people from
different countries and became one of
Kublai Khan’s (1214-1294) closest friends.
Back to Italy he told his story in the book
that became the greatest diary of all times,
the book of Wonders, also known as the
Million.
Itinerario del viaggio di Marco
Polo
Dante Alighieri
Firenze 1265- Ravenna 1321
He is known as the greatest poet, author of
many works, but mainly the author of the
"Divine Comedy."
The "Divine Comedy" is the masterpiece of the
Florentine poet and is considered as one of the
most important examples of the Italian culture.
The Divine Comedy is presented as an
imaginary journey through the Hell, Purgatory
and Paradise. Dante said he was chosen to visit
the underworld to be able to tell people what
he saw. During this experience, Dante
encounters numerous characters, now dead,
and communicates with them who are forever
damned souls, souls being purified and blessed
souls.
Montale refers of Dante as a….
«.Universal heritage ... ».
Cristoforo Colombo
Genova 1451- Valladolid 1506
He was among the most important Italian sailors
who took part in the process of exploration of the
great geographical discoveries at the turn of the
fifteenth and sixteenth century.
Sailor since his youth Colombo, during his travels as a
merchant, came up with the idea of ​an overseas land
existence, Asia, according to him.
«I began to navigate the sea at a very young age,
and continued until now. This profession arouses
curiosity about the secrets of the world. During
my training years, I studied texts of a all kinds :
cosmography, histories, chronicles, philosophy
and other disciplines. Through these writings,
the hand of our Lord opened my mind to the
possibility of sailing to the Indies, and gave me
the will to undertake this trip. Who could doubt
that this flash of knowledge was not the work of
the Holy Spirit ? »
(Cristoforo Colombo, Book of prophecies, 67)
Leonardo Da Vinci
Eclectic spirit, Leonardo was a painter, scientist, writer and
engineer.
He is considered one of the greatest geniuses of mankind.
During his lifetime, Leonardo invented many concepts,
some of them, like the flying machine, were real
prototypes.
Leonardo manifested his interest for the flight in around
the year 1482. The observation of birds convinces him that
the flight has nothing mysterious but it is a mechanical
phenomenon, due to the flap of the wings in the air.
Vinci 1452– Amboise 1519
The fact that the air is
compressible and makes a
resistance capable of supporting
a body, is one of the
fundamental discovers of
Leonardo, who realized that also
man had the possibility to fly.
Project of a flying machine
Galileo Galilei
«"Philosophy is written in this important book
which stands continually open before our eyes (I
mean the universe), but can not be understood
unless you first learn to understand the
language, and to know the characters, and how
it is written. It is written in the language of
mathematics, and its characters are triangles,
circles, and other geometrical figures, without
which it is humanly impossible to understand a
single word, without them you wander around
in a dark labyrinth »
(Galileo Galilei, Il Saggiatore, Cap. VI)
Pisa 1564 – Arcetri 1642
His name is associated with important
contributions in dynamic and astronomy including the improvement of the telescope,
which allowed important astronomical
observations - and the introduction of the
scientific method (often called the Galilean
method or experimental scientific method).
His role was of primary importance in the
astronomical revolution; he supported the
heliocentric system and the Copernican theory.
Alessandro Manzoni
The writer who gave great authority to the Italian
Romanticism .
He was born in Milan in 1785. He became a great worldfamous writer, author of the novel "The Betrothed", a work
in which he highlights the eternal conflict between vice and
innocence. The theme of journey recurs when the future
married couple leave their country to escape the oppressor;
with the "Farewell to the mountains”, Manzoni writes a page
of great poetry. The same theme is presented when he tells
about Renzo escaping the gendarmes… "walk, walk,”… to
state his fate as a traveler. The internal narrative metaphor of
Renzo’s travels reflects Manzoni’s idea of travelling” that also
recurs when he talks about his writing: "Now, we cannot
avoid stopping, as the traveler, tired and sad with a long walk,
who holds and loses a little“time under the shadow of a tree.”
Milano 1785-1873
GIUSEPPE GARIBALDI,
THE HERO OF THE TWO WORLDS
Giuseppe Garibaldi, the hero of two
worlds. His pride and his courage
led him far from his home, in Latin
America, to fight on behalf of
freedom and independence ideals.
The same patriotic ideals moved to
the struggle to unite Italy, to put an
end to the divisions which weighed
on our country. Calabria was also
one of the destinations of his
expeditions and conquests, to
achieve a single purpose of unity.
Nizza 1807 – Caprera 1882
Lucio Dalla
Bologna 1943-Montreaux 2012
Capitano che hai negli occhi
il tuo nobile destino
pensi mai al marinaio
a cui manca pane e vino
capitano che hai trovato
principesse in ogni porto
pensi mai al rematore
che sua moglie crede morto
Itaca, Itaca, Itaca
la mia casa ce l'ho solo la‘
Itaca, Itaca, Itaca
ed a casa io voglio tornare
dal mare, dal mare, dal mare
Capitano le tue colpe
pago anch'io coi giorni miei,
mentre il mio più gran peccato
fa sorridere gli dei
e se muori è un re che muore
la tua casa avra' un erede
quando io non torno a casa
entran dentro fame e sete
Capitano che risolvi
con l'astuzia ogni avventura
ti ricordi di un soldato
che ogni volta ha piu' paura
ma anche la paura in fondo
mi dà sempre un gusto strano
se ci fosse ancora mondo
sono pronto dove andiamo.
The singer-songwriter Lucio Dalla uses the
point of view of the sailor who asks his captain
if he ever worries about the fate of all those
soldiers who travel with him. The sailor says to
his captain he wishes he went back to his
beloved Ithaca, where his wife is waiting for
him. He also says that he is poor and has to
travel to earn money to support his family.
In fact, if he died, his family would not survive,
and if the captain died, it would be like missing
a king: who always let an heir and great
wealth.
In the song Dalla refers to the mythical Greek
traveler, even if he chooses not to mention him
ever. There are, in fact, linguistic elements that
are clear allusions to the journey of Odysseus.
Alcide De Gasperi
The journey to USA
• Politician
This was the first trip of the Italian Prime
Minister in the United States. The
meeting with the highest officials of the
U.S. Administration was in favor of the
economic aid that Italy was in urgent
need.
The journey of De Gasperi helped the
admission of Italy in international
institutions like the World Bank and the
International Monetary Fund.
Along with the Frenchman Robert
Schuman and the German Konrad
Adenauer, he is considered one of the
founding fathers of the European Union.
European policy with a common
parliament was his great belief.
Pieve Tesino 1881 – Borgo Valsugana 1954
Dacia Maraini
a memory as a journey
Writer, poet, essayist, playwright and screenwriter.
"Literature is a trip in the memory lanes: it is
important to know how to listen to when it comes,
unexpected just like Plato’s birds (memories) that
reach the tree (the mind)."
The ship from Kobe
"... The first taste I've known and of which I keep
the memory, is the taste of the trip. A taste of
luggage just opened: naphthalene, shoe polish and
the perfume that permeated my mother’s clothes
on which I sank my face with delight. The trunk ...
opened as the theater coffers once did ... "
Fiesole 1936 – vivente
Luciano Pavarotti
Modena 1935 – Modena 2007
Tenor.
Thanks to his vocal ability, music
and communication has managed
to change the face of opera
forever.
He brought the work to boundless
audiences and was able to open
the doors of traditional theatres to
a vast new audience.
Rita Levi Montalcini
A journey in the world of scientific research lasting 103 years
Torino 1909 – present scientist
She received the Nobel Prize for medicine in
1986 for the discovery and identification of
the growth factor of nerve fibers.
"I say to young people: Do not think of
yourself, think of others. Think of the future
that awaits you, think about what you can do
and do not fear of anything. Do not fear the
difficulties. "
Now let’s continue our journey
among the people...
...Whose name, thanks to their
personality, gave popularity to our
Region in the world…
Born in Scilla, Raffaele Piria, on
whom our school bears its name,
was a scientist of high level, he is
considered the founder of modern
chemistry. In 1860, after the
legendary landing of Garibaldi on
Calabrian costs, Cavour gave him
the task to supervise the
plebiscite that stated the
annexation of our region to the
Kingdom of Italy. In 1862 he was
named Senator of the Kingdom.
(Scilla 1814 – Torino 1865)
Samo 570 a.C. circa – Metaponto 495 a.C. circa
Greek mathematician,
philosopher, astronomer,
scientist and politician.
Pythagoras from Samos
moved to the Magna
Grecia where, around in
530 BC., he founded a
school in Crotone.
Lived in the 5th century BC in the Chalcis colony
of Rhegion, the sculptor Pythagoras is
considered one of the five greatest Greek artists
lived after Phidias, and certainly the biggest
sculptor of Magna Grecia in Calabria.
The origins of the sculptor are still uncertain
because there is no hystorical evidence that
shows the native town. But it is certain that in
the fifth century BC, in Rhegion, a famous
sculptor named Pythagoras lived and worked, he
was also known as a disciple of the great master
Clearchus, one of the greatest exponents of the
statuary of Magna Grecia in Calabria.
According to recent studies he could be the
author of one or both the statues known as the
Bronze Statues.
itinerant preacher
Tarso 5 – 10 d.C. - Roma 64 - 67 d.C.
The arrival of St. Paul in Reggio, witnessed by the Acts of Apostles, took place on
the headland Artemisio, the current Calamizzi beach.
The apostle would have got to be able to preach the Gospel of Christ to the
people, but on one condition: he could only speak to the crowd until a candle,
placed on a broken column of the temple, had not consumed. According to the
tradition, after the wax had finished, the column caught fire to allow St. Paul to
keep talking.
The burnt column that allowed St.Paul’s preaching, is still housed in the
Cathedral of Reggio Calabria.
He was the greatest philosopher of
the Renaissance.
He completed his studies in the
Academy of Cosenza, where he
learned about Telesio’s Naturalism.
In his most famous work, “The City
of the Sun”, Campanella gives vent
to the new political and social ideas
that characterized his life since an
early age. The work is a model for
the understanding of his spirit that
expresses the general desire to
redeem Europe in the seventeenth
century, before the feudal system
decline.
Stilo 1568 – Parigi 1639
Taverna 1613 – Malta 1699
Named the Calabrian cavalier painter of the
Neapolitan school, he belongs to Caravaggio’s school.
Among his paintings the "Belshazzar of feast", the
“Crucifix", "Lazarus’s Resurrection ." He was the official
painter of Malta’s Knights and worked at the
decorations of St. John’s Cathedral in La Valletta.
Some of his works are found in the art gallery of
Taverna.
"A southern conservative reformist “
as defined by Italo Falcomatà.
De Nava was the "first minister from
Reggio to be appointed by the king,"
He did his best to make Reggio be
rebuilt from the ruins after the
earthquake of 1908.
Reggio Calabria 1858 – Roma 1924
His political life was rich of events that
marked a period of deep changes in
Italy after the “Risorgimento”.
Famous musician, author of vocal,
symphonic and chamber music.
He showed his love for music since he was
a little boy. He was particularly impressed
by the final “piece” of Bellini’s “Norma”
once he listened a concert performed by
the musical band in his town.
In 1897, Cilea presented the opera "The
Arlesiana“ at the International Lyrical
Theatre of Milan.
Palmi 1866 – Varazze 1950
In his memory, the Theatre Francesco Cilea and the Music School of Reggio Calabria
were entitled after him.
A mausoleum was erected in his home town and a street bears his name .
• Writer of vigorous moral behavior, he was the
is the pessimist writer of his mythic and
beloved Calabria.
Although an open minded intellectual towards
Europe, thanks to his stay abroad and his work
assignments, especially in France, he remained
deeply rooted to his home town.
San Luca 1895 – Roma 1956
In his works he always shows the need to tell
about the humble, poor and painful reality of
Calabria with the lyrical and evocative tones of
the person who lives far away from his land.
Reggio Cal.1895 – Veliki Krib 1917
Italian military hero of World War I, he was awarded
with the gold medal for military valor memory on
March 23,1919.
He considered the war not only as the possibility
for Italian people to highlight the love for the country
together with a strong adherence to the nationalist
enthusiasm of his time, but he also thought, with "Calabrian
tenacity“ that the war was "a process by which it was
necessary to improve the relations of brotherhood and
equality among the regions of Italy. "
Placanica 1909 – Dagabur 1935
A military aviator, Lieutenant of the
Royal Air Force and a hero in Ethiopia
war, he was awarded the gold medal
for military valor.
In memory of Tito Minniti the Airport
of Reggio Calabria has been named
after his name, as well as a primary
school in the town of Pompei, a
middle school in Naples, some
educational institutions and several
streets in Italian cities.
the perpetual dynamism
Reggio Calabria 1882 – Verona 1916
Futurist painter and sculptor.
Unique Forms of Continuity in
the Space
Adventurous and restless soul as
a fighter, he wandered the
world, trying to find countless
ways, attracted both by the
violent action and the dream.
The aim of his art: to find a way
that could represent the speed
of modern times on canvas.
The raising town - Museum of Modern Art, New York
Reggio Calabria 1946 – Miami Beach 1997
Designer, collector of globes.
As a boy he worked for her mother’s atelier, since
she was a dressmaker .
He wished he had been one of “Ulysses gang" and
one of Marco Polo’s friends.
His travel experiences are reflected in his work
with the creation of "impossible encounters“; he
said: "I like that a Fragonard dress can talk to
Picasso, that Evita Peron can dance with Yukio
Mishima."
journey into the world of genes
Biologist, physician and geneticist.
He was the first geneticist to realize that some forms of cancer originated from
genetic defects in the DNA.
The study of oncogen viruses, which could transform a normal cell into a cancer
cell, was the one that made him gain he Nobel Prize in 1975.
He took part to the International Human Genome Project from which a complete
map of human DNA resulted.
Catanzaro 1914 – La Jolla 2012