Abstract

The section presents the interventions held at the launch of the last issue of the "Bollettino di italianistica" dedicated to the eightieth birthday of its outgoing director, Alberto Asor Rosa, held in Rome at the Department of Documentary, linguistic, philological and geographical Sciences of Sapienza University on February 28th, 2014. Some significant personalities of academic world, literary criticism and journalism, Paolo Di Giovine, Ernesto Franco, Benedetta Tobagi and Umberto Eco, otherwise related with Asor Rosa for friendship or professional relationships, discuss the issues raised by the "Bollettino", portray the character of Asor Rosa summarize his reading of history, literature, culture, and politics. Within this varied landscape, spanning more than half a century of national life, the voices of the speakers invest a wide register of forms and meanings, not disdaining to range from shades of severe criticism tho the humorous and light-hearted friendship.