Engendering Borders: Piccola Guerra Perfetta by Elvira Dones

Abstract

Women’s point of view is the key feature in the writing of Elvira Dones, an Albanian author who lives in the United States and also speaks Italian. Though she does not write essays, her works are imbued with documentary attention. Dealing with social, cultural and historical themes, especially those linked to her country of origin, Dones describes and denounces effectively severe situations of marginalization and violence against women, even if through the filter of fiction. A novel like Piccola guerra perfetta (Einaudi 2011) originated in the need to tell about war, violence and abuse from women’s point of view. This is in line with historiographical trends developed since the Seventies, which have included in history the “inner front” of wars, that of “civil population”. Moreover, in line with historiographical trends enhancing the gender point of view, Dones’ writing weaves together individual and institutional dimensions, it overcomes the dichotomy between public and private and it allows a careful reflection on power relationships, social interactions, man’s and woman’s identity in a situation as extreme as war. The women in Piccola guerra perfetta live on the border from many points of view: it is a material border since they have secluded themselves for fear of being killed or raped and it is also an identity border because they have to hide their belongings to save their lives; this context of deep subordination, always running the risk of being cancelled, contrasts with Dones’ choice, which focuses on women by giving them back their voice and body. The last novel of this Albanian author shows how deeply the gender perspective can explore a phenomenon such as war, disclosing resistance practices and developing an unconventional point of view on a reality at risk of marginalization and oblivion, which gains centrality and acknowledgement in this way.

Keywords: Italophone Writing, Elvira Dones, Kosovo, Migration Literature.