Profile of Carlo Levi on Famous Like Me

Carlo Levi (November 29, 1902 – January 4, 1975) was an Italian-Jewish painter, writer, activist, anti-fascist, and doctor.

He is best known for his book, Cristo si è fermato a Eboli (Christ Stopped at Eboli), published in 1945, a memoir of his time spent in exile in Lucania, Italy, after being arrested in connection with his political activism. In 1979, the book became the basis of a movie of the same name, directed by Francesco Rosi. Lucania, now called Basilicata, is historically one of the poorest and most background regions of the impoverished Italian south. Levi's lucid, non-ideological and sympathetic description of the daily hardships experienced by the local peasants helped to propel the "Problem of the South" into national discourse after the end of the World War II.

Early life

Levi was born in Turin, Italy to wealthy Jewish physician Ercole Levi and Annetta Treves, the daughter of Claudio Treves. He studied medicine and graduated from the University of Turin in 1924. He did not, however, practise medicine, choosing instead to become a painter and to pursue his political interests. He had become friends with Piero Gobetti while at university and this led him further into the realm of political activism.

Political activism and exile

In 1929, along with Carlo and Nello Rosselli he founded an anti-fascist movement called Giustizia e Libertà, becoming a director of the Italian branch along with Leone Ginzburg, a Russian Jew from Odessa who had emigrated with his parents to Italy.

As a result of his activism and involvement with anti-fascist movements, Levi was arrested and exiled to Aliano (Gagliano in the book), a town in a remote area of Italy called Lucania from 1935 to 1936. There he encountered a poverty almost unknown in prosperous northern Italy. While there, Levi worked on the side as one of the doctors for the villagers, although he had never practised medicine after graduating from medical school. During his exile he spent much of his time painting.

After his release, he moved to France and lived there from 1939 to 1941. In 1941, he returned to Italy, and was later arrested in Florence and imprisoned in the Murate prison. He was released following Benito Mussolini's arrest and sought refuge in the Pitti Palace, where he wrote his Cristo si è fermato a Eboli.

After World War II, he moved to Rome and served for a time as the editor of the Italia libera, the publication of the Partito d'Azione, an anti-fascist organization that grew out of the republican tradition. He continued to write and paint, exhibiting in Europe and the United States. His written works include L'Orologio (The Watch) (1950), Le parole sono pietre (Words Are Stones) ([), and Il Futuro ha un Cuore Antico (The Future has an Ancient Heart) (1956). In 1963, he was elected to the Senate as an independent on the Communist Party ticket; he was re-elected to the Senate in 1968 and served there until 1972. He died of pneumonia in Rome on January 4, 1975.

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