The Black Legend of Maria Montessori. The great Italian pedagogist between modernism, fascism and theosophy
19 March 2024
Hosted by Andrea Dessardo
The fourth installment of the lecture series promoted by the "Manlio Cecovini Study Society" is scheduled for Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at 6:00 PM at the Antico Caffè San Marco in Trieste.
The event, led by Professor Andrea Dessardo, will delve into the figure of Maria Montessori, a pedagogue, educator, and physician.
The rediscovery of the pedagogy of Maria Montessori (1870-1952), widely disseminated and celebrated worldwide since at least 1916, occurred in Italy – the country she left in 1934 in protest against fascism, after an initial phase of collaboration – with a certain delay, mainly due to reservations expressed about her by the Catholic world in the post-World War II period. The educational proposal of the Marchigian pedagogue was indeed accused of being influenced not only by the positivist atmosphere in which she trained as a physician but also by eminent figures in Freemasonry, including the Mayor of Rome, Ernesto Nathan, who assisted her in the early years. However, what made her reception in Italy more problematic, even leading to a "black legend" surrounding her, were her associations with Theosophy, known in India during the Second World War, from which she drew insights for her later works, including the key concept of "cosmic education.
For more information, please contact manliocecovini@studysociety.it.
The fourth installment of the lecture series promoted by the "Manlio Cecovini Study Society" is scheduled for Tuesday, March 19, 2024, at 6:00 PM at the Antico Caffè San Marco in Trieste.
The event, led by Professor Andrea Dessardo, will delve into the figure of Maria Montessori, a pedagogue, educator, and physician.
The rediscovery of the pedagogy of Maria Montessori (1870-1952), widely disseminated and celebrated worldwide since at least 1916, occurred in Italy – the country she left in 1934 in protest against fascism, after an initial phase of collaboration – with a certain delay, mainly due to reservations expressed about her by the Catholic world in the post-World War II period. The educational proposal of the Marchigian pedagogue was indeed accused of being influenced not only by the positivist atmosphere in which she trained as a physician but also by eminent figures in Freemasonry, including the Mayor of Rome, Ernesto Nathan, who assisted her in the early years. However, what made her reception in Italy more problematic, even leading to a "black legend" surrounding her, were her associations with Theosophy, known in India during the Second World War, from which she drew insights for her later works, including the key concept of "cosmic education.
For more information, please contact manliocecovini@studysociety.it.
