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No sé si al terminar de leer esta fantástica recopilación de material, después de acabar con cierta tristeza este viaje, me ha quedado claro lo qué es esa frantumaglia. Sin embargo, estoy segura de haberla sentido muchas veces. También estoy segura que, de un modo u otro, Elena Ferrante se ha convertido en una de mis mejores amigas, como en su momento lo han sido Lila y Lenù.

Crítica completa en: https://alibreria.com/2018/02/20/la-frantumaglia-de-elena-ferrante/ ( )

FRANTUMAGLIA is a collection of letters, interviews, and other correspondence between the author Elena Ferrante, her editors, and fans/journalists/artists. It was at the suggestion of her editors in fact, Sandro Ferri and Sandra Ozzola Ferri, that this book even came to fruition. It chronicles the time from when her first book, TROUBLING LOVE was published in Italy (1992), through the publication of the final installment in the Neapolitan Quartet, THE STORY OF THE LOST CHILD in America in 2015. All of the writings were originally in Italian, but have been translated into English here.

For fans of Ferrante's work, this book gives insights into the themes she has explored, as well as some recommendations of authors whom she finds inspiring and formative. For readers who are new to Ferrante, this correspondence demonstrates the thoughtful and precise way she utilizes language. Her writing style isn't particularly poetic or fluid, but is incredibly well-crafted. She puts so much thought and care into every phrase, and that is part of why I find it so addicting to read.

Because this book includes transcripts of decades’-worth of interviews, there are some recurring questions. The most frequent one regards the author's identity. It is widely known that Elena Ferrante is a pen name, and the user of that nom de plume has taken great pains to ensure that her true identity is concealed. She does not take part in any in-person or audio interviews, and requires all correspondence to be funneled through her editors. Because of this, the media (especially the Italian literary media) have made it their mission to "uncover" the true identity of Elena Ferrante. As recently as October, 2016 (long after FRANTUMAGLIA was published) an Italian article was published that purports to have uncovered Elena Ferrante's true identity, going so far as to obtain (through what means..?) financial documents that show unusually large transactions between a publisher, an author, and a translator - to give weight to the claim. In what universe do people care so much about the identity of an author that they would go to such extremes? To what extent is an artist allowed privacy and the choice of a non-public life?

This cult of discovery is troubling on many levels. First, once one releases a work of art into the world, is that person then obligated to have any further involvement in the work? There seems to exist, in some perspectives, an umbilical connection between a work and its creator, that the personality branding of the person who wrote the book must carry some weight on the book itself. I also wonder how much attention there would be if the pen name of the author was masculine - Emilio Ferrante, let’s say. There runs an undercurrant of sexism here – suggesting that this writer must be revealed because it is so difficult to believe a woman capable of creating such a vivid and expansive world. In a culture where fame is seen as the pinnacle of a career, for someone to eschew such recognition may be difficult to understand.

Over and over again, interviewers make comparisons between her and famous Italian authors, and ask if she and those other authors are the same person. She never answers these questions, nor gives any particular details that might clarify any part of her identity. In fact, she, at one point, tells her editors that she may follow writer Italo Calvino's lead and freely answer questions…but not with the truth. That is part of what is so interesting about FRANTUMAGLIA - you can try to read the personal into her answers, but ultimately what matters is the creative process and its products. Wondering whether characters, descriptions, or plots in any of her stories are autobiographical is a waste of energy. She believes wholeheartedly that the author's job comes to an end once the writing is complete. It shouldn't matter who the author is, as long as the story explores some greater truth. ( )

I've read the whole Neapolitan quartet and a few other of her books, but this was truly boring. I could summarize all the countless letters and interviews in one sentence: Why Ferrante wants her identity to remain private; or Why the true identity of the author has no relevance for her fictional work. ( )