Three Italian Jewish Families

The story of the three families in this book is easy to follow because Stille tells their histories in chronological order:

The story of the Ovazzas concentrates on the participation of Italian Jews in World War I and the rise of fascism. The Foa chapters begin in the mid-1930s, when the rise of Hitler stimulated a growing antifascism among many Italian Jews. The central event of the Di Veroli narrative is the great roundup in the Rome ghetto, on October 16, 1943---the first large-scale action against Italy's Jews (14-15).

While we are comparing and contrasting these three families, it is important to keep in mind that their stories, taken as a whole, give us a full picture of what it was like for Jewish families in Italy during the period of fascism. Family history, as we shall see, is important because it gives us that full picture of the effects of political change on a stable part

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ass. Like the Ovazzas, they were not a very religious Jewish family (94-95). Unlike the Ovazzas, the Foas were strongly anti-fascist: Vittorio's father was a liberal, which in Italy at the time meant a supporter of free trade, a free press, and parliamentary democracy. "My father had an enormous political influence on me. He was an antifascist, but without rhetoric or emphasis. He educated me in the love of democracy and liberty" (96). Vittorio, who became the head of the family during the most important period of Italian fascism, was against the stupidity of the fascists. He did not think that fascists would do much damage, and that fascist would fall apart because of its weaknesses and stupidity. But the family became more active in the fight against fascism when it became clear that fascism was becoming stronger. When a number of the Jewish friends of the Foa family were arrested for activities against the government, the Foas became more involved in the anti-fascist movement. Not all of them wanted to get more involved, but they saw they had no choice. We saw how the Ovazzas became more and more pro-fascist, but the Foas became more and more anti-fascist. Also, their anti-fascism became connected with their Jewishness bec
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Di Verolis, Ovazzas Foas, Son Ettore, Jews Turin, Di Veroli, Jewish Italian, Italy's Jews, Ovazzas Jewish, War II, Italy Vittorio, di verolis, ovazza family, jewish families, jewish italian, foa family, fascism family, ovazzas foas, outside ghetto, world war, italian jews, di veroli family, foas strongly anti-fascist, jews outside ghetto, ghetto di verolis, di verolis protection,
Approximate Word count = 2039
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page)