Il rapporto fra intellettuali e politica nell'Italia degli anni Cinquanta: le opere degli storici come casi di studio.

In this essay I address the theme of the relationship between politics and culture in the light of a particular perspective: that of the Italian historians of the fifties. In the first paragraph I will analyze the political and cultural defeat of Benedetto Croce in the aftermath of the Second World War. In the second I will examine the interpretative pro- posal of the scholars who in the fifties dealt with the Risorgimento and the liberal age. In the third I will deal with a book of great success, Italy: a Modern History, by Denis Mack Smith. The thesis of the essay is that the relationship between historiography and politics, which originates immediately after the war, has not been as positive as it is described to- day, in times when many denounce the divorce between politics and culture. For years, in fact, authoritative politicians, scholars and representatives of civil society have expressed concern in the face of ruling classes that seem to ignore the contribution of intellectuals. In the light of the essay’s considerations, I would argue that the public service of histori- ans is a problematic omen.