Whenever I see a cartoon of a leading politician with a long nose, I am reminded of Pinocchio. Those who have read Carlo Collodi’s fascinating book will remember the mischievous but good-hearted puppet that turned into a boy. The book has sold countless millions since its first publication in 1881. Today Pinocchio stands as one of the foremost children’s classics. It has been translated into more than 200 languages including Esperanto. However, not much is known about its author. As a result some people think that Pinocchio is a Walt Disney creation. Others consider it as an ancient folklore.
Pinocchio is actually the brainchild of a Florentine author known as Carlo Collodi who was a minor civil servant. As he had some literary talents he started writing stories for adults but failed to satisfy them. Then he started writing children’s stories. In fact, Collodi was his pen name. His real name was Lorenzini. A book publisher known as Paggi who noted Collodi’s literary talents commissioned him to translate a French book of fables in 1875. When the book became a best seller, other publishers commissioned him to write humorous tales, grammar books and even geography texts. In 1881 ‘Giornale per i bambini’, a children’s periodical assigned him to write a series of stories.
With all such assignments he did not make much money. He then wrote ‘The Story of a Puppet’ and sent it to a publisher, but the book did not sell. Then he wrote some more stories but young readers protested. When he decided to end the series the readers protested again. The children’s periodical editor announced that Pinocchio was not dead. Four months later, the series reappeared under the title ‘The Adventures of Pinocchio.’ Collodi made some blunders in his stories. Once, Pinocchio was shown selling his school text books and failing to attend school. Later Pinocchio was shown as a literate boy. Despite such frivolous inconsistencies children loved his stories. In 1883 Collodi was pressed for money and sold his rights to the Paggi publishing company for 500 lire, a small amount of money. The whole series was published as a book and Collodi never regretted for having sold the copyrights. The book did not sell as expected, but Italian children still loved Pinocchio. After some time, scholars realized the literary value of Pinocchio and began to analyse it critically.
Today Pinocchio is considered as an action-packed story of the life and times of its author. Those who have read the book will remember the Showman who is the boss of the Marionette show. The evil Fox and Cat are said to be based on a man named Gatto who used to steal chicken. When Pinocchio is eaten by the Terrible Shark, he meets Gepetto, his father, who had borrowed money from a wealthy man but he could not pay the high interest. As a result, he was ‘swallowed up’ by his debts. Thus Pinocchio comes to his father’s rescue.
Pinocchio has been read and enjoyed by many generations. The story has stood the test of time and it will remain popular for many more years to come. In 1952 the National Committee for the Monument to Pinocchio started raising 40,000,000 lire for a park to be opened near the village where Collodi was born. Italian schoolchildren and well-wishers in foreign countries contributed lavishly for the project. In 1956, the park was opened featuring a bronze sculpture of Pinocchio, the child Fairy and a bird. The park also has a Magic Square with mosaics of episodes from the book. In addition, the park has a playground for children and a permanent exhibition of all the editions of Pinocchio.
Household word
Today Collodi’s puppet – Pinocchio – has become a household word. Parents often warn their children that they would have donkey’s ears if they do not study. That was what happened to Pinocchio when he failed to attend school. What is more, children are often reminded that their noses would grow longer if they tell lies.
This is because whenever Pinocchio uttered a lie, his nose grew longer! As such, Pinocchio is no longer a puppet but a boy having flesh and blood. Pinocchio shows children what happens when they do not learn or tell lies. He reminds them the suffering they have to undergo when they act mischievously. The last two lines of Carlo Collodi’s classic still echo in us: “How mischievous I was when I was a marionette! And how glad I am that I have become a real boy!” Today scholars treat Pinocchio as a moral tale, and a good read for both children and adults. Readers may probably be familiar with the following quotation from the book: “The Talking Cricket (Grillo Parlante) was right! If I had not run away from home and if Father were here now, I should not be dying of hunger. Oh, how horrible it is to be hungry!”
In the meantime, Gepetto’s spirit comes across throughout the book. It will certainly melt your heart – a poor man, with not a penny to his name, selling his coat to buy a book for this marvel of a child born from a piece of wood. Readers may also remember a Fairy who comes to Pinocchio’s rescue after he gets into life-threatening trouble. Theirs is one of the liveliest exchanges in the story. The scene also introduces the growing nose with lies: “Lies, my boy, are known in a moment. There are two kinds of lies, lies with short legs and lies with long noses. Yours, just now, happen to have long noses.”
Theme
The story is quite simple. Gepetto brings up Pinocchio (‘pine nut’) as his son. But Pinocchio is disobedient and starts telling lies. Gepetto makes many sacrifices for his adopted son, but Pinocchio finds it hard to be good.
He is easily led astray tumbling from one disastrous adventure to another in which he is robbed, imprisoned, chased by bandits and only narrowly escapes death. His friends, the Cricket and the Blue Fairy, try to make his dream to be a real boy come true, but it can never come true until Pinocchio finally changes his ways.
Like many children’s stories, its theme is that of a naughty child who must learn to be good, not just for his own sake but for the sake of others around him.