Donne e madri ne La contessa di ricotta di Milena Agus

Milena Agus has achieved in a few years a considerable success with her novels centered on unhappy female figures. Although Agus claims not to have been inspired by women's studies, she addresses some typical women's issues in her works. Furthermore, her novel La contessa di ricotta (2009) may be considered an original rewriting of Deledda’s Canne al vento (1913), because it conveys a quite unconventional representation of femininity and motherhood. Comparing the two novels, the research aims to demonstrate the originality of Agus’ perspective on women's issues. The solidarity and complicity among women, as well as the image of the mother as a synthesis of values that have a positive impact on society, are two crucial elements in Agus’ poetic and lay the preconditions for overcoming the male-defined feminine imaginary.