SOURCE: "Pirandello's Short Story 'La Rosa' as a Work of Art," translated by Giovanni R. Bussino, in Canadian Journal of Italian Studies, Vol. 12, Nos. 38-9, 1989, pp. 67-73.

In the following essay, Rauhut analyses the structure, theme, and literary devices of Pirandello's story "The Rose. "

Because of its significant human value, Pirandello's short story "La rosa" ("The Rose"), first published in La Lettura in November 1914, merits an aesthetic analysis.

For the sake of orientation I will summarize the plot. Lucietta, the twenty-year-old widow of Loffredi (a journalist who was murdered), lives alone with her two children and has to face the problem of supporting herself and them. By winning a competition, she succeeds in obtaining the position of telegraph operator in the small town of Pèola. In the drowsy village the attractive young woman becomes a stimulating element. From the very beginning Fausto Silvagni, the thirty-five-year-old town secretary...