‘Dillortan’, Clambagio’s seventh novel between ethics and historical memory

With the publication of ‘Dillortan – Sometimes violence pays?’, Claudio Bianchetti, aka Clambagio, reaches his seventh novel, confirming an expressive maturity already celebrated by twelve literary prizes, obtained by ‘Ironta – Pazzo per Victor’, and by the acclaim of figures such as Dacia Maraini, Franco Manzoni and Luca Liguori. The work, a historical-uchronic novel, courageously addresses the tensions of a border territory, inspired by the events that marked Alto Adige in the 1960s. The author places a moral question at the center of the story that runs through the entire volume: “How much and when is it permissible to respond to violence with violence?”. It is Clambagio himself who explains the genesis of this reflection: “‘Dillortan’ conveys the atmosphere of fear and revenge of an oppressed people who have never been subdued. I wanted to investigate that precise moment in which political pressure becomes revolt, trying to understand what remains of humanity in the heart of such a profound tension”.