MARCO SCARDIGLI

Superstizione, alcolismo e fuga nelle trincee italiane: 1915-1917 (Aspetti e problemi)

N. 1/1986

Summary — The work analyses the wish for escape from the reality of the war in the various aspects which the soldiers in the trenches are faced with. The modalities are divided in legal, or accepted by the commanders (superstition, and alcoholism) and illegal (desertion, self-injuring and fraudulent "cunning"). The examination of superstition starts from the works of Father Gemelli and proceeds to the description of superstitious practices, of amulets, of rites either born in the trenches or inherited from civil life.

The problem of alcoholism is dealt with under the profile of alcoholic supplies and under sanitary and juridical profiles.

Among in illicit escapes from the trench, desertion is looked upon both as abandonment of the combat line and as refusal to go back from leaves. A description is made of the stratagems carried out to make one’s escape from the trenches, the political significance of the desertions and the measures taken by the authorities. The practice of self-injuring is seen as a supreme act to evade war. The medical and legal aspects of self-wounding are taken into consideration and the question is mentioned of hospitals for self-injurers.

In the impossibility to describe all the "cunnings" put into practice by soldiers to improve their own condition, some typical examples are cited. The simulators of pathologies inhibiting military service are then analyzed more specifically together with their techniques and the effects on the sanitary legislation of the army.