The Theatre of the Grotesque, a dramatic movement in Italy from 1916 until 1930, grew directly out of Pirandello's concept of "umorismo," the painful laugh accompanying the tragic sense of bewilderment at the incongruities and cruelties of life. Growing first of all from a reaction against positivism and its theatrical counterpart,…

This report, given at a special meeting held in Tehran, discusses various kinds of children's books in Italy, focusing on fairy tales and legends, modern fiction with surrealistic perspectives, adventure novels, and nonfiction, as well as the illustration of children's literature. An appendix lists some Italian authors, their works, and…