Lockdown Stories

Future historians will have a plethora of sources available upon which to debate: from the cultured reflections of intellectuals and professionals, to the daily testimonies left on social networks, to the selfies and videos that have crowded the web during the period of quarantine. What sets this volume apart, however, is the will to leave a more intimate evidence of people’s lives, unmediated through use of technology and special effects, with no filters: the days of the pandemic told (through words or images) through the deep exploration of lives, in light of one’ own personal and professional affairs, affections and emotions, memories and passions, dreams, without forgetting desires and hopes for recovery. The red line that ties these stories is Italy, as seen by those who live there or those who, after having left, often for work-related reasons, have followed the country’s events through mass media or their loved ones, thus, in a sense, experiencing a double-quarantine. And conversely, through those who not being born in Italy have chosen it for their home, internalizing its culture and identity. History here calls to something very deep, passion: determined, reflected upon and constant for life, as well as for sharing.