I riti nuziali dell’Abruzzo dell’Ottocento attraverso l’Ethno-fiction dannunziana

This paper aims to investigate some aspects of the literary work of Gabriele D’Annunzio, which are strictly related to cultural anthropology and folklore. More specifically, I focus on the recurring folk wedding ceremonies of the Abruzzi region that appear in Le novelle della Pescara, Trionfo della morte, and La figlia di Iorio. First, I trace the sources of D’Annunzio within the works of Antonio De Nino and recreate the pertaining ethno-cultural system. Then, I demonstrate how he moved on from the mere decorative use of folkloric referents – the folklorèmes – to the construction of a complex ethno-fiction in La figlia di Iorio, in which they play a structuring function within the plot. This re-elaboration and staging of the nuptial rite will show the desire of D’Annunzio to render the meaning of folk rite to the intellectual élites, his specific anthropological interpretation, and also his ideological position on folklore.