From the Restoration to the Pisanelli Code (1815-1865): A Cultural and Historical Assessment of the Legal Status of Women in the North of the Italian Peninsula

Abstract From the Restoration to the Pisanelli Code (1815-1865): A Cultural and Historical Assessment of the Legal Status of Women in the North of the Italian Peninsula In the context of a changing political landscape, where shifts in state boundaries and socio-economic structures deeply affected the Italian peninsula and its people, this thesis analyses women and the law in action in the years from the Restoration up to the enactment of the Pisanelli code (1815-1865). It does so with particular reference to the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia. These years also saw a number of changes in the legal system with various new laws instituted. The quick succession of these legal acts testified to the new ideas, behaviours and perceptions that began to take form in the period in question, but which the patriarchal and hierarchical nineteenth century society – so reliant on strict class stratification to perpetuate its status quo - resisted fully accepting. Within this context, women began to redefine their sense of self and to think of themselves as having an identity which went beyond their traditional domestic roles of mother, wife or daughter. This work aims to describe this process by focusing on women’s attitudes towards the law and their interactions with the legal system. The thesis is structured in the following way: the first part focuses on the Ottocento context, the ideals promulgated about women in public discourse and the legal framework of the Italian peninsula. In the second part attention turns to relevant case studies from the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, brought to light by first-hand examination of archival documents and court proceedings preserved in legal journals of the time. Each part is subdivided into three chapters. After an examination of the social, political and economic context of the nineteenth-century Italian peninsula (Chapter one), the discussion presents a picture of contemporary views about women according to scientists, theorists, moralists and jurists (Chapter two). Chapter three is devoted to the law in force in the pre-unification states with regard to women, paying close attention to the institution of dowry. Chapter four deals with a selection of case studies concerning marriage promises, seduction, and extramarital relations. What emerges from the investigation is the intrusiveness of authorities and the reach they extended into people’s private lives in an effort to maintain social order and exercise power within a society founded on hierarchy, immobility, and obedience. Chapter five examines lawsuits questioning dowries and wills. These acts show the families’ choices to preserve their wealth, often inevitably paving the way to future discord, with women initiating lawsuits to obtain more money from their relatives. Finally, Chapter six analyses widowhood and separation, two possible moments in a woman’s existence that had important implications in terms of both their intimate sphere and the devolution of wealth. In particular, the chapter traces widows’ actual access to inheritance, and women’s requests for separation, focusing on the reasons that drove them before a court to relate issues pertaining to their very intimate lives, such as contracting diseases. Through the analysis of the law in action and women’s use of the law itself, this thesis will recover the forgotten voices and lives of those ordinary women, who, in their everyday life, reacted against the limitations and constraints imposed upon them by society and decided not to passively accept their status

Sex-specific Personalities in the Purple Marsh Crab

Animals are considered to possess personalities when individuals differ in behavior, and these differences are consistent between situations. Several studies have identified personalities in diverse groups but less is known about personality variation between the sexes. In this study, we examined variation in two key personality traits (boldness, activity) in female and male purple marsh crabs (Sesarma reticulatum) using a semi-field approach. Specifically, we measured boldness and activity on two consecutive days using the same behavioral assays during each time point. Consistency (personality) was determined using Kendall’s coefficient of concordance based on Spearman correlation coefficients for each behavior. The results showed that personalities differed between the sexes. Females exhibited activity personalities but not boldness personalities. Males did not exhibit personalities for either behavior

Eros Burning: Men in the Middle of Divorce

This research explores what happens to some men when, despite the best of intentions and heroic efforts on all sides, a marriage ends in divorce. Using a blend of alchemical hermeneutics and hermeneutic phenomenology, this qualitative study explores the lived experience of 5 heterosexual men who suffered psychologically in divorce. Divorce was examined from Freudian, Jungian, and archetypal perspectives using the depth psychological lenses of alchemy, mythology, and fairy tale. A hybrid method of qualitative analysis was created that incorporated the use of psychodrama to analyze the data. From the results of this study, the journey through divorce for suffering men can be seen as being comprised of 3 stages: a Coming Storm, a Tempest, and an Aftermath. The intrapsychic destruction experienced by many men in divorce was also viewed as an attempt at an undoing of the hieros gamos, or sacred marriage. From the results of this investigation, it is further postulated that such a divorce may be a psychological impossibility. The author’s experience as a divorced man informs his observations and conclusions

Fascism and ‘Italians abroad’ : national identity and the building of the fascist state

When Mussolini rose to power in 1922, Italians were still emigrating on a large scale. Historically seen as a form of economic safety valve by Italian governments, migration became a key issue after the United States limited access to Italian immigrants. With the conquest and establishment of the Empire in East Africa, emigration became increasingly linked to the Fascist ideal of the 'New Man' and the Italian alleged racial superiority. This article focuses on how the Fascist regime used migration to support and propagandise its ideals, using Italian emigration to the United States and the occupation of East Africa as key examples. In particular, by showing the changes in the language used to refer to the Italian emigrant, this study aims to retrace the different stages that brought the unskilled, unwelcome Italian emigrant to become an 'Italian abroad' and a 'pioneer'

Graft Intra-Articular Remodeling and Bone Incorporation in ACL Reconstruction: The State of the Art and Clinical Implications

The knee is one of the most frequently affected joints in sports trauma, and anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury and meniscal tears are the most common lesions. ACL reconstruction (ACLR) remains the treatment of choice for patients willing to return to their previous activity. There are different surgical techniques and different possible usable grafts. The graft used for ACLR surgery undergoes a bone incorporation process and an intra-articular remodelling named ligamentization until it reaches characteristics similar to the native ligament. After the first incorporation stage, the remodelling process is divided into an early stage that could last 4 weeks, a proliferative stage that lasts 4 to 12 weeks, and a final stage of ligamentization that could last over 1 year. The period of return to sport (RTS) after ACLR, which is becoming shorter and shorter, can be a high-risk period for athletes due to the risk of graft failure. This systematic review aims to define the phases of the ligamentization process considering graft type and fixation techniques, as well as the graft’s anatomopathological and biomechanical characteristics, to evaluate a criterion-based rehab progression and maximize patient outcomes for an RTS respecting graft biology. The rehabilitative program has to promote and optimize the graft remodelling and incorporation processes; moreover, it has to accommodate physiological graft healing and avoid overloading. An early RTS and noncompliance with the biological characteristics of the graft in the various phases are associated with a high incidence of re-injury