Marocco

De Amicis, Edmondo, 1846-1908Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.2

Word count: 589K words
Chapters: 59

Summary

A travelogue of Morocco written in Italian by Edmondo De Amicis, this work belongs to historical and geographical literature and is made freely available by Project Gutenberg. De Amicis is best known for Cuore; here he shows another side as a traveler-observer, recording from firsthand experience the cities, markets, customs, and people of nineteenth-century Morocco in prose marked by its era and by considerable literary quality. Its value lies not only in travel impressions but in offering a sample of how a nineteenth-century European intellectual viewed North Africa—useful for reading against a postcolonial lens and as supplementary material for the study of Italian literature and travel writing. The original is in Italian; readers are advised to consult maps and background materials and to treat it as a historical text rather than a modern travel guide. Suitable for readers interested in Moroccan history and travel literature and in reading Italian.

Editor's review

An Italian-language travelogue of Morocco by the Italian writer Edmondo De Amicis, a historical and geographical work released free by Project Gutenberg. De Amicis is best known for Cuore (Heart); this book shows another side of him as a traveler-observer, recording through first-hand experience the cities, markets, customs, and people of nineteenth-century Morocco in prose marked by its era and strong literary quality. Its value lies not only in travel observations but in offering a sample of how a nineteenth-century European intellectual viewed North Africa—useful for reading against a postcolonial lens, and as supplementary material for studying Italian literature and travel writing. The original is in Italian; readers should consult maps and background materials and treat it as a historical text rather than a modern travel guide. Suitable for readers interested in Moroccan history, travel literature, and reading in Italian.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in nineteenth-century North Africa and Moroccan history
Students of travel literature and cross-cultural writing
Readers with Italian reading ability who want to expand their reading of original texts
Readers who like Cuore and want to see another side of the author

Not a good fit for

Tourists seeking practical contemporary travel information about Morocco
Readers with no Italian and no willingness to use supporting tools
General readers expecting a tightly plotted novel-like narrative

Reading tips

Read the introduction or publisher's note first to understand the period of writing and the nature of the text, then move on to the main text.
Consult maps to mark place names while reading and trace the author's itinerary.
For the Italian original, read closely chapter by chapter with a dictionary and write a brief summary after each.
Read alongside modern Moroccan travelogues to observe changes in perspective and focus.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book a novel or a travelogue?

It is a travelogue of Morocco written in Italian by De Amicis, a historical and geographical work recording the author's travel observations. It is not a fictional novel; read it as a period text with literary qualities.

Can I read it without any Italian?

The original is in Italian, so reading without any foundation is difficult. Use translation tools or a bilingual edition for support, or learn about Moroccan history first and then try reading section by section, focusing on understanding the observations and the period perspective.

Is it suitable as a travel guide?

No. The book was written in the nineteenth century and reflects the society and the author's perspective of that time; information on transport, cities, and customs has long changed. For practical travel information, choose a contemporary guide; this book is better read as history and literature.

Comments

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About the author

De Amicis, Edmondo, 1846-1908 Author

Edmondo De Amicis (1846-1908) was an Italian writer best known to Chinese readers for his children's book Cuore (often translated as The Heart), subtitled "An Italian Schoolboy's Journal." The library holds 19 of his works, including, besides Cuore, the travel books Morocco, Its People and Places, Spain, v. 1, Constantinople, v. 1, Constantinople, v. 2 and Holland, v. 1, as well as the military sketches La vita militare: bozzetti and the Finnish translation Sydän: Kirja nuorisolle. These works draw on school, family, army life and foreign travel, written in a warm, realistic style that stresses feeling and moral education; Cuore is the most widely read and has had a lasting influence among inspirational coming-of-age books. Public information on his life dates and nationality is limited, so such details are omitted here.