Italo Calvino and the Invisible Cities: Between Literature and Urban Sociology

Abstract

In his novel Invisible Cities (1972), Italo Calvino,  the well-known Italian writer (1923-1985), creates a fascinating and complex urban world that, beyond its narrative and fable-like character, offers a view of remarkable interest to urban sociologists. The writer’s urban imagery is rooted in a cultural system that looks at the city as a fundamental element of Western civilization. The cities of his imagination belong to a long tradition of reflection on urban realities; at the same time, they are an expression of a historical and cultural period that began to question their transformation in late industrial and post-industrial society. On the other hand, some scientific studies of the city have a narrative aspect and propose theories that can be read as stories and sometimes use storytelling to convey the complexity of the urban experience. This makes the relationships between theory and imagination and between science and literature much more subtle and dynamic than they are usually believed to be. Calvino’s urban universe surpasses the cities that he knew and seems to include cities that evolved after the publication of his book and even after his death. This is the case, for instance, of Dubai and other postmodern “fantasy cities”. Moreover, the cities of his imagination may be interpreted as elements of an urban view that defragments the city and anticipates some recent scientific analyses.