Curzio Malaparte, the enigmatic Italian writer, famously characterized his internal exile under Mussolini's Fascist regime as "Five years in hell." However, a recent tweet from Ashley Frawley, referencing an article by military strategist Edward Luttwak for Compact Magazine, suggests this dramatic portrayal was a calculated exaggeration by Italy's "most shameless fabulist." The tweet highlights that Malaparte's "hell" often involved "exile in villas and luxury hotels" after his falling out with the Fascist Party.
Malaparte, born Kurt Erich Suckert, was initially a prominent figure within the Fascist movement. His downfall began in 1933 after publishing "Technique du coup d'etat," which critiqued both Hitler and Mussolini, and for allegedly insinuating that Italo Balbo, a high Fascist official, was plotting against Mussolini. This led to his arrest and subsequent internal exile, or confino.
His initial sentence was a five-year term on the remote island of Lipari, primarily inhabited by fishermen. However, this period was reportedly reduced to two and a half years, and he was later moved to more comfortable locations like Ischia and Forte dei Marmi. Despite the more lenient conditions, Malaparte consistently maintained the narrative of a brutal five-year ordeal, especially after the Fascist regime collapsed, allowing him to reposition himself as an anti-Fascist victim.
According to Luttwak's article in Compact Magazine, Malaparte's self-serving narrative was a strategic move to cleanse his image. He was known for his opportunistic shifts in political allegiance, moving from Fascism to later serving as a liaison officer for the American High Command in Italy and even showing enthusiasm for Mao's China. This chameleon-like nature underscores the "fabulist" label.
Malaparte's literary output, including works like Kaputt and The Skin, often blurred the lines between fact and fiction, reflecting his own life's ambiguities. His enduring legacy is intertwined with his controversial persona, where the dramatic recounting of his "five years in hell" served as a cornerstone of his post-Fascist identity, despite the more nuanced reality of his confinement.