The writings of Primo Levi have been read predominantly in terms of Holocaust literature. From his early testimonies,
If this is a Man(1958) and
The Truce(1963), to works such as
The Periodic Table(1975),
The Wrench(1978),
Moments of Reprieve(1981),
If not Now, When(1982) and through to his final admonition,
The Drowned and the Saved(1986), Levi never ceased from bearing witness to the incommensurable horrors of Nazi genocide, and, specifically, his own experience of incarceration in Auschwitz. Each novel is, in the survivor's own words, an “account of atrocities”, and the immediate and violent impulse which pushes each narrative forward is the overwhelming need to communicate “to tell our story to 'the rest', to make 'the rest' participate in it.”
Primo Levi's story began
2888 words
Citation: Baxter, Jeannette. "Primo Levi". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 20 September 2002 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=2709, accessed 21 November 2024.]
