Nohis new novel The rice weeder (E/O Editions), Silvia Montemurro returns to the roots of fiction as a magnifying glass on women’s lives. We are in 1913, among the rice fields of Piedmont, where work bends its back but where women, often invisible in great history, finally become protagonists. The writer chooses to tell precisely about this peasant and feminine universe. Bringing to light a forgotten world yet surprisingly (still) close to ours.
Silvia Montemurro and that fascination for rice fields
In the novel, the rice field is both refuge and prison, mirror of a society that imposes strict roles but which, precisely in those years, begins to crack thanks to the desire for emancipation. After The Little One And The Storks of La Scala (E/O Editions), the writer continues her path of exploration of the female condition in the twentieth century by choosing to explore two themes that are still very current today: motherhood and the possibility for a woman to truly choose her own destiny.
If the past is still… present
Silvia Montemurro: «The rice field, prison and beloved place for the protagonist»
Silvia Montemurro, what drove you to set the story in the Piedmont of the rice fields of 1913?
I had a project in mind: to explore various professions linked to the world of women in the early twentieth century. This is also because my degree thesis in Philology had precisely this purpose, which I really liked: to give an account of other countries as well and not just of the Milan of those years.
And I believe that we can turn the question around, asking ourselves who is still not attracted by the women who have made history and by the history of women, a history that has been neglected for a long time and which today is instead an explosive theme, a theme that affects us all, also in light of recent events in which women must bring out their rights and fight for them.
Why are you so attracted to women and history?
I have already explored the concepts of social conventions and female emancipation in the two previous novels, The Little One And The storks of La Scalabut also partly The secret of Villa Carlotta. What I was really interested in exploring in this new novel is motherhood and the associated freedom: a theme that I investigate in the past, but which in reality still concerns the modern woman and her, in my opinion, not being fully aware, and therefore not being free to choose whether to become a mother or not, without society affecting or judging this choice in some way.
Silvia Montemurro: «The novel explores female emancipation»
The rice field represents the roots…
There were some novels that inspired me to understand how the rice field was, at the same time, a prison and a place loved by my protagonist, Lena. In fact, when Lena moves and goes to Turin, she no longer finds that sense of protection and that presence of nature that made her feel truly at home because she was born and raised in nature, and that is where she recognizes her roots. In this sense, the excerpts of poetry present in the novel are also significant: they give voice to the natural elements, becoming a sort of second voice for Lena, who speaks through the images of her childhood.
The novel explores motherhood, freedom, social conventions and female emancipation.
Compared to what I have said, obviously giant strides have been made regarding the condition of women at work and in society. As I said above, however, there are still issues that are almost considered taboos and conditions persist in which women are not completely free. Emancipation is not over.
Silvia Montemurro: «My rice weeder inspired by The Girl from the Swamp»
Which authors or works inspired you for this book?
The Marchioness Colombi, Matilde Serao, definitely. And also Margaret Atwood, who inspired me with the part about the womb for rent. Furthermore, there is a novel that I particularly loved, The Swamp Girl: despite being a thriller, it is a true hymn to the love of nature.
What moved you towards this story?
It all started from the fascination for Teresa Ferrero, aka Isabluette, who worked at the Manifattura Tabacchi in Turin and dreamed of becoming a showgirl. In reality she became much more: she was the one who discovered, among others, Totò, transforming herself into a true entrepreneur in a world dominated by patriarchy. Discovering this female figure deeply inspired me in the creation of my characters and meant that Isabluette also found space and voice within this story.
For an aspiring writer who wants to tell the story of women in difficult historical contexts, what would you recommend?
If you want to tell stories of women from the past, you have to go to the archives, dig into what history has to offer us, let yourself be fascinated by the images, by the iconography of the city and the chosen period. And, above all, never stop asking yourself why you want to tell that story.