Cosmonyms: Deep time and deep space in contemporary Italian poetry

Abstract

This paper delves into the interplay among naming, Deep Time, and Deep Space (i.e., spacetime on a cosmogeological scale and from an evolutionary perspective) in the latest compositions by Italian poets Bruno Galluccio, Antonella Anedda, Andrea De Alberti, Lorenzo Vilei, Luigi Severi, and Franco Buffoni. I will examine the various strategies employed to evoke the incomprehensible depths of space-time within poetic texts: firstly, the theme of surrendering to the unnameable (explored by Anedda and Galluccio), followed by the anthropomorphization of evolutionary processes through the use of proper names like Lucy and Luca (as seen in De Alberti and Vilei’s works). By comparing these compositions with other contemporary poetry collections, I will identify a recurring pattern, discernible in De Alberti, Anedda, Galluccio, and Enrico Testa’s works (all published by Einaudi), characterized by alliterations and the compression of the macroscopic into the microscopic, accentuated by vast differences in scale. Lastly, I will highlight a distinct approach: the personification of celestial bodies and their names (referred to here as cosmonyms) by Buffoni and Severi.