There is no European society whose modern history has been more deeply marked by disasters, both natural and social, than has Italy’s. Disasters whether epidemics, earthquakes, floods, war, or terrorism—test the social fabric and the political system to their limits, as survival and rebuilding draw on the deepest cultural reserves. This book brings together new research on all aspects of the Italian experience of disaster from unification to the present day. It book is a significant contribution both to the understanding of Italian history, and to the study of the impact of disasters on society.

Stereotypical representations of the Mezzogiorno are a persistent feature of Italian culture at all levels. John Dickie analyzes these stereotypes in the post Unification period, when the Mezzogiornio was widely seen as barbaric, violent or irrational, an "Africa" on the European continent.