Per un primo discorso americano sulla poesia di Luciano Cecchinel

Luciano Cecchinel's poetics is profoundly affected by the circumstances of his grandfathers' emigration to the U.S., followed by the return to Italy of some of them and part of the family remaining. However, the impact that American popular culture, music, and literature had on his poetry has yet to be adequately studied. The present essay attempts to fill in this blank by providing the first analysis of the blues features of his "American collections," Lungo la traccia (2005) and Da sponda a sponda (forthcoming). The study shows how the intermingling of African-American and Italian-American cultures and forms is developed in these works as a means of cultural resilience. Tracing blues traits and African-American themes, it takes into consideration how blues elements meld with traditional Trevisan call- and-response forms. In so doing, it also sheds light on Cecchinel's desire to re-discuss Italian-American identity and its future.