Benedetto Croce. Dominio simbolico e storia intellettuale

Benedetto Croce dominated Italian cultural life for half a century. It is impossible to understand the intellectual history of the early 20th century without taking into account this fact, which is exceptional in terms of its breadth and duration. It is true that much has been written about Croce, but there are no analyses that satisfactorily account for his long reign and his entire intellectual and political career. Biographies focus on the subject, while studies of his work are influenced by specialisation, are sectorial and overlook the essential: Croce’s ubiquity and the effects of the extraordinary concentration of resources and roles he achieved. Neither “internal” nor “external” analyses are sufficient to explain an author’s texts and success: it is a short circuit to trace works and prestige directly back to their social and political context. This sterile alternative can be overcome by taking into account the specific, relatively autonomous microcosm that circumscribes the possibilities and limits within which intellectual choices are defined. Anna Boschetti reconstructs the state of the cultural production field in which Croce was inserted and, inseparably, his relationship with this space, oriented by the position he occupied and his habitus. The analysis shows how Croce’s ideas on Marx, Hegel, history, art, logic, science, literature and politics took shape in comparison with the models, masters, competitors and adversaries that the playing field offered him. Thus, the inseparable connection that links his trajectory to the history of the Italian and European cultural field emerges. Furthermore, the conditions of possibility and the effects of Croce’s dominance emerge. At the same time, this book brings fifty years of intellectual history back to life, with its problems and passionate battles, restoring a more concrete and truer image of Croce and his interlocutors.