Naples, a devil's paradise

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When we stayed for a short break on the Amalfi Coast a few months ago, we saw all the famous sights viewed. Except Naples. We didn't want to die. We dared with our rental car don't go there. Was that right? I read the recently published book about Naples by Gert Hage to find out. Naples, a devil's paradise.

The author stayed in a rented apartment for a year to Napels to get to know them intensively and to get an answer to the pressing question of how this once mighty, thriving and prosperous capital and royal city had sunk to the lowest point, the drain of Europe.

Mafia and Corruption

Even the toxic waste that has nowhere to dispose of in Northern Italy is simply dumped in the front and back yards of Naples. Without anyone protesting. Who were the inhabitants of this city that they seemed to accept the decline, the ubiquity of the mafia and the corruption of the government just like that?

If only we can eat

Were they lazy, lax, criminal, as some (many?) Northern Italians think? Were the Neapolitans entirely their own fault for the social and economic misery? That the average Neapolitan has become despondent is apparent from the life motto 'O Franza o Spagna, purché se magna' from the city. Who is in power (France or Spain) doesn't matter, as long as we have food to eat.

The book lets you experience Naples

Gert Hage spoke with a selection of self-proclaimed experts and residents of Naples to get an idea of this. He read some of the most important studies that have been done on the Naples phenomenon and took a good look around. The result is a very informative and entertaining book that makes you experience Naples almost literally. But has the author also found the answers to the questions he asked?

No unambiguous answer

There are logically no unambiguous answers to the question of the cause of a complex process such as the gradual decline of a city like Naples. Of course, that decline is not solely (or at all) the fault of its inhabitants (which the settentrionalism, northerners, like to say, the Lega Nord first). Any more than it is solely the fault of the unification of Italy, of the hegemony of the Piedmontese (which is the favorite explanation of the meridionalism, the southerners).

Hage makes it clear that the decline of Naples long before the Risorgimento had been deployed. A consequence of the fact that the then ruler Ferdinand II was a bad administrator who did not see the importance of industrialization. And after a completely unsuccessful uprising in 1799, the upper class no longer interfered at all with the state of the city. She withdrew into her own protected world of tradition, luxury and culture.

Gentlemen of position

And she does to this day. This is apparent from Hage's startling conversation with Giancarlo Maresca, grand master of the four hundred member Knighthood of the Guards of the Nine Doors, a chic company of distinguished gentlemen. "We don't do politics, we are not against anything, our only aim is to gather and spread knowledge about the good, beautiful life," says the grandmaster, dressed in handmade silk pajamas as his Sri Lankan servant serves lunch. Can it be simpler?

degradation

Already in the nineteenth century, Naples missed the crucial battle that ensured that no hopeless underlayer did not arise in other large cities. As was and still is the case in Naples. Subsequent developments have only intensified the process of the degradation of Naples.

For example:

The unification and domination of the north
The disgust that Mussolini from the south
The period at the end of World War II, when the Americans used the mafia to break the fascist resistance
The mass emigration of workers to the north during the economic revival of the 50s and 60s
The cholera epidemic in 1973
The earthquake in 1980

Sottoproletariato

The program sottoproletariato still exists and lives in the old town and certain neighborhoods completely independently of the rest of the population. According to its own social and economic structure. No one, the city council, the police, nor the better-off Neapolitan population themselves, is meddling with this group anymore. Which thus provides the breeding ground for the camorra has become. The underprivileged, poorly educated youngsters can only go one way: that of organized crime.

Is there still hope?

Gert Hage gives the floor to a number of residents who are trying to break the vicious circle. The sad thing is that they are all citizens' initiatives that are doomed to fail due to lack of (financial) support.

And working together is not the Neapolitan's strong suit, the author notes. Which, by the way, may be called a widespread feature in Italy. Freeing Naples from the grip of poverty, crime and corruption can only succeed if the national and municipal governments join forces to fight the Camorra. And ensure that there is good education and that young people have a chance at fair work.

We will see

Until now, it has never been possible to get this far. But the author cautiously hopes that the independent mayor De Magistris and the young, energetic prime minister Renzi will succeed. After a false start, De Magistris was re-elected as mayor just a month or two ago and Renzi is still in the saddle. We shall see.

A devil's paradise, but not dangerous

Is Naples dangerous? New. The author even feels right at home after such a long stay. But there are, as in many other cities, neighborhoods that you should avoid. Next time we should put on the naughty shoes and take a look!

Naples, a Devil's Paradise is an informative, easy-to-read book, although you have to do your best to keep everyone apart. Fortunately, there is an excellent register of names and also an overview of the sources used for those who want to study further on this unruly phenomenon.