The Book
The plot
This book is a long letter written by an old lady about 80 years
old. She is afraid of her age, and she thinks that she hasn't enough
time to live, so she decides to write a letter to her niece, who
lives in a city far away. The lady's letter is transformed in a
diary, where she tries to build the ruined relation with her niece
again. They were kept together because the girl was an orphan and
they lived together for a lot of years. In all these pages, the lady
talks about herself, and how she spends all the days in her home
because she cant' go out because of the winter and the cold weather.
In this letter, she tells all the happiest and most dramatic secrets
of her life and she talks about her past. In the writing, she uses a
narrative style very particular, so she renders well the concept of
memory's sweetness. On this concept, the book is founded: in fact
memory is the way that she uses to recreate the affect that existed
between she and her niece. She finishes the letter and reminds her
niece to open the heart at life's happiness;she must follow her
heart because it will be the only one that will give her the right
direction.
Claudia Esposito
Isabella Costagliola
Giuseppina Parente
Federica Starace
Summary of the novel
The novel “Follow your heart” written by the Italian author Susanna
Tamaro is about the lifetime stories of three women of different
ages: granddaughter, mother and grandmother. The grandmother writes
letters to her granddaughter, who lives in the United States. In
these letters, which she never sends to her, she explains how their
ways of living differ from each other, due to the different epochs
and different social societies they grow up in.
The old Lady, who sees her life going to end soon, thinks the right
time has come to admit mistakes and to concede the lies of her
living. Her daughter, whose views she never understood, died in a
car accident. So she felt constrained to raise her orphaned
granddaughter. In this well sheltered atmosphere, the granddaughter
felt uncomfortable. So she moved to the United States, where she
tries to gain some self-realization.
Characters from the book Follow your heart
“Follow your heart” is the diary that a grandmother leaves to her
granddaughter, putting in it the memories of a turbulent life seamed
among contradictions, ambiguities and family tragedies.
There aren’t’t any actual characters in this book, but you can tell
clearly the Olga’s figure, the grandma, and the Marta’s, the
granddaughter, to whom come abreast the figures who left a profound
mark in the old woman’s existence.
Olga
The elderly lady lives alone in a comfortable “villa” just outside
Trieste: her granddaughter left recently to go to America angry with
her grandmother and with a strong desire for freedom. After a heart
attack she decides to write a long letter to her granddaughter:
indeed she wants to leave her with her memories, without disturbing
her in America.
Olga is a woman with a difficult past: straightaway at an early age
she had to deal with her parents’ hard-heartedness. As time went by
she got married to Augusto, without being totally convinced and when
the relationship died because of a lack of feeling she finds her
true love with Ernesto. Ernesto is her doctor for a week when she is
at Porretta spa. She gives birth to a girl, Ilaria, Ernesto’s
daughter and Martha’s future mother. Her relationship with her
daughter is disappointing and as time passes it continues to
deteriorate. So eventually Olga tells her daughter that the man she
calls daddy is not her real father. Revealing this secret throws
Martha into total confusion and that day she dies in a car accident
leaving Olga with her baby-girl only a few years old.
Marta
Marta is the receiver of the letter that Olga writes: she is the
granddaughter to whom her last thoughts as a old lady are directed.
The young women is in a full adolescence crisis and is tormented by
doubts and uncertainties- her only way out is to close herself under
her armour and hide here feelings. Olga tries in vane to understand
her and to get close to her but she is refused and despised and she
pushed further away. Marta has always shown herself to be
particularly profound –asking questions that other children would
never think about it and sustaining to remember a previous life she’d
lived. In total despair endanger she leaves, distancing herself from
her grandmother and trying to be totally alone.
Ilaria
Ilaria has a illness, Ilaria is told by Olga that she is not
Augusto’s daughter and the news is so overwhelming that she dies the
same day in a car crash.
Buck
Buck is the dog that Olga gave to Marta. He is a magnet, not very
pretty, but he was the only dog Marta choose out of a huge group of
dogs at the kennels. Buck seems the only able to understand and help
the grandmother.
Olga’s parents
Olga’s parents were a negative influence in her life. They were cold
and cynical . The only important thing for them was appearances.
They did not care about their child’s needs but they cared about
manners. Her mother was an actress without a heart who abandoned
acting to marry a rich man from a Nobile family.
Augusto
Augusto was an Italian deader who lived for a while in Olga’s
parents house, although he was quite old and he didn’t have a
family. Olga was attracted to his passion for insects and after a
brief engagement- she married him. Augusto is one of his age and
takes little interest is his wife- dedicating most of his time to
insects.
Ernesto
Olga meets Ernesto when is already married. Ernesto was a doctor at
the spa at Porretta where Olga was sent to rest and was recovered
for stress. There was a special bond between the two of them
immediately which starts as a physical attraction and then turns
into love. Ernesto has deep feelings for Olga and seems to be her
missed half. But they are both married. Their love is indestructible
and remains strong even with the distance that separated them. On
second meeting Olga decided to have a baby with him(Marta).
Unfortunately Ernesto dies tragically in a car accident.
Olga neighbours
Olga’s neighbours are a married couple who are really kind and they
always help Olga. They do her shopping and they take her into
hospital after her second heart attack.
Afeltra Giovanna
Discolo Alessandra
Russo Mariarosaria
Santaniello Ilaria
Vingiani Antonio
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