Pinocchio’s origin story: Not exactly the stuff of cartoons

“The Adventures of Pinocchio. The Story of a Puppet” (Le avventure di Pinocchio. Storia di un burattino) is partly the story of the classic tale’s many incarnations. It is the single most translated book from Italian into other languages, and one of the three most translated books ever, after the Bible and “The Little Prince.” The beloved saga has also been reimagined in every other media, from puppet shows and theatrical productions to television series and motion pictures, not to mention memes and GIFs in recent years.

It’s safe to say that the whole world is at least passingly familiar with the story of a puppet who dreams of becoming a real boy. Far less well known is the tale of his creator.

In the original book, a frightening puppeteer named Mangiafuoco, who carries a whip made of snakes and fox tails, demands that Pinocchio be burned as firewood to roast his mutton. | WIKIPEDIA

Like all characters, Pinocchio’s story begins with his author, Carlo Collodi, which was actually the pen name of Carlo Lorenzini. Collodi was born in 1826 in Florence, Tuscany. Early in his life, he fought in several wars for independence on the peninsula and was a firm supporter of the Risorgimento, which came to fruition during his lifetime. Interspersed with his military service, Collodi helped found a variety of publications and wrote in several genres. Many of his works were censored or repressed. In the twilight of his years, he was saddened by the direction of politics in the newly unified country. That disillusionment fueled much of the subtext
of his later writings, even those for children.

Collodi’s crowning literary achievement was “Le avventure di Pinocchio. Storia di un burattino.” It began its long literary journey as a series in the Italian children’s magazine Giornale per i bambini, launching in July 1881 and culminating after four months and eight installments. The series was revived by popular demand in February 1882, and the full text was published in 1883 as a novel that met with critical and popular acclaim around the world.

There’s a chasm between how an average American views Pinocchio and how the book is seen in Italy. To Americans raised on Disney’s ubiquitous cinematic rendition, it’s a story for children. Italians see it as a book not just for kids, but for all generations. Indeed, Pinocchio is viewed throughout the Boot as a seminal work in the canon of Italian literature. In their introduction to Penguin’s recent translation, John Hooper and Anna Kraczyna note that in Italy the book has achieved a status similar to that of “Alice in Wonderland” or “Gulliver’s Travels” in the English-speaking world. Scholars have studied the book for its “cultural, social, political and even religious significance.”

The original version presents a darker, far more nuanced and textured story than many on this side of the Atlantic might expect. On one level, the novel is very much a coming-of-age story, with Pinocchio’s transformation from a puppet to a real boy an enduring metaphor for attaining maturity. But it also serves as a stark satirical critique of the society Collodi saw around him.

Early on in the novel, we are presented with Gepetto’s home, which is a small, cramped room with little by way of furniture, reflecting the poverty of many Italians at the time. Most other characters in the novel are poor, and hunger lurks around every corner. The carabinieri are presented as corrupt or incompetent, as are the judges before whom Pinocchio seeks, but does not receive, justice.

The novel doesn’t wallow in pain and suffering. There are plenty of moments of whimsy, joy and growth throughout. The book expresses Collodi’s belief that education presents a real opportunity for self-improvement for students who give themselves over fully to their studies. Pinocchio eventually does become a real boy, but he does so by caring for his parent figure, Gepetto, as he ages. Most Italian Americans will recognize this theme of multigenerational compassion.

Those aspects come to the fore in the cinematic version released by Walt Disney in 1940. It was the studio’s second animated feature-length film, and it marked a tremendous technical achievement. Among its breakthroughs were the realistic movement of animals and objects, like carts, as well as its lifelike impressions of fire, rain and smoke. It was placed on the official National Film Registry in 1994 by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.”

The film won Walt Disney his first Oscars, including one for the song “When You Wish Upon a Star.” The tune has since become the unofficial anthem of the Disney corporation, as any visitor to Disneyland or Disney World can attest. More than 80 years later, consumers can still buy Pinocchio toys and paraphernalia that reflect Disney’s iteration of the character.

But Walt’s version blunts many of the harsher realities of Collodi’s novel. Gepetto’s workshop is a place of magic and wonder in the film, not squalor, as in the novel. The difference between the two versions can best be seen through the character of Jiminy Cricket. In the animated feature, Jiminy is a loquacious and funny sidekick who narrates the story and serves as Pinocchio’s affable conscience at the request of the Blue Fairy. In the book, he’s known as Il Grillo Parlante (the Talking Cricket). When he sternly warns Pinocchio of the dangers of disobedience right out of the gate, the young puppet disregards his advice and kills him on the spot with a hammer. But the resilient bug returns as a ghost to haunt the protagonist. And the nose that so famously grows when Pinocchio lies in the Disney version? It’s a minor aspect of the original tale.

Disney’s Pinocchio lives in a de-Italianized world. That’s due in part to the mounting tensions with Mussolini’s Italy in the run-up to World War II at the time of the film, according to Hooper and Kraczyna. There are few substantive differences between the 1940 version and the live-action remake that Disney released in 2022. Despite a cast that featured Tom Hanks as Gepetto and all the magic that modern CGI can muster, the reception for the film — both popular and critical — was quite poor. Both versions are available on the Disney streaming service.

In late 2022, Guillermo del Toro released his stop-motion animation version of the Italian classic. The Mexican filmmaker had long loved the story, finding visual inspiration for his adaptation in the gothic Illustrations American artist Gris Grimly created for a 2002 release of the novel. Del Toro returns the story to Italy, setting it between the two world wars. Much darker in tone, his version has impeccable production values and a creative verve that captivates the imagination. Del Toro’s retelling has strong themes of anti-fascism, perhaps reflecting the director’s own politics. As in the other stories, Pinocchio becomes a real boy but along a path similar to that of the novel. This version, along with a making-of documentary, streams on Netflix.

Collodi died in 1890, leaving no children, but his creation Pinocchio lives on. The new Penguin version of the book from Hooper and Kraczyna brings a solid translation together with ample footnotes to guide and inform. It’s a great read and a great way to return to the roots of a classic tale that has literally spanned the globe as an ambassador for Italian culture and artistry. 

Reprinted from the Chicago magazine Fra Noi, with author’s permission.