A Masked Time of the Year

The Great Book of Italy
Annie Sacerdoti and Maria Laura Della Croce

This is a book that explores the history, culture, and social institutions of Italy as a whole. Specifically for Venice, it describes one of the more popular tourists attractions – Carnivals.

Social events have a huge effect on the Venetian economy, as they bring in tourists from all over the world to witness the beauty of the city in its time of festival. Several cities in Italy hold what is known as Carnivali, or Carnivals. The most well-known hosts of these festivals are Venice and Viareggio. Every year, the Carnival brings massive crowds into Venice for an entire week. Dating back to Roman lupercali (an ancient springtime fertility holiday), Carnivals are spiritual celebrations that transform the city into a stage of fancy dresses and masked people wishing to hide their true identity. Traditionally, those who wore masks wished to hide all forms of identification of themselves so that they could escape social classes for the time being. These Carnivals combined together celebrations o f pagan rights, Christian spirituality, magic, history, and the life/death dichotomy.

The importance of exploring the social aspects of Venice, like these Carnivals, is important in investigating Venetian economy because these kinds of events bring in even more tourists than are already coming to Venice to explore the city. It showcases some Venetian culture and history, while at the same time stimulating the economy. A more prominent impact on the economy from these Carnivals will be further explored in the weeks to come.