Lives Of The Saints ( Response Paper )

Name: Course: Professor: Date: Lives of the Saints ( Response paper ) Introduction: Throughout history, Italians are known to be superstitious because they believe in performing certain rituals to attain good luck. These rituals protects them from being cursed with the evil eye known as malocchio. i). Definition of superstition: Superstition is a belief or a theory of what is likely to occur in certain circumstances that are not based on factual evidence or reason. The theme of superstition is common among many Italian writers. ii). The theme of superstition by Nino Ricci: “Lives of the Saints", by Nino Ricci published in 1990, reveals the negative effects of the evil eye known as malocchio. Malocchio is believed to produce harmful emanations towards others. Nino Ricci’s novel provides us with a deeper understanding of such beliefs. Summary of the novel: Lives of the Saints is a story of a young boy living in Valle del Sole a small village in Italy. The story revolves around a seven-year-old Vittorio and his mother Cristina. The theme about malocchio is introduced early in the novel. Cristina is bitten by a snake in the stables while in the process of committing adultery with a blue-eyed Man (Ricci 32). The snake bite is believed to be the consequence of her sin. The novel focuses on the secret affair of Cristina with the blue-eyed man; and a curse is placed upon Cristina because of her relationship with the blue-eyed man, who is portrayed as an outsider. ii). The role of the blue eyed man in the story: The author portrays the blue-eyed man as the source of all the problems, the snake bite is perceived to be a curse whereby an evil eye or Malocchio is cursed upon Cristina for committing sin with the blue-eyed man (Ricci 51). Throughout the narration, the author presents the theme of the destructive power of superstition as expressed by t...