The narrated Italy and the real one: cui prodest?

The perception that a people has of itself is crucial for its cultural, economic, and social development. Whether it concerns individuals or nations, rooting oneself in one’s roots, recognizing one’s identity, and feeling at the center of one’s world is what allows for the construction of mature relationships based on cooperation and independence. When a people allows itself to be defined by external narratives, the risk is to live in a state of cultural and psychological subalternity, with profound consequences on its capacity for development.

Examples like Ethiopia demonstrate how even peoples without great economic power can live centered on their identity. Italy, on the other hand, one of the nations richest in cultural, historical, and economic resources, often appears imprisoned by a narrative that depicts it as the periphery of MittelEuropa, in decline and subordinate. The question is: cui prodest?

Rooting in One’s Roots: the example of Ethiopia

An emblematic example is Ethiopia, a country that, while not a global economic power, perceives itself as the center of its own world. Rooted in a millennia-old history, which includes figures like the Queen of Sheba and a victorious resistance against colonialism, Ethiopia never sees itself as a periphery, but as a central place in its own cultural and historical universe. This sense of identity has allowed Ethiopians to face deep crises while maintaining their pride and cohesion.

These peoples demonstrate that economic power is not the only resource that matters. The ability to keep one’s symbolic resources alive — culture, history, values — allows for a centered and autonomous life, without feeling like a periphery of something.

The Narrated Italy

In contrast to reality, the dominant narrative about Italy tends to highlight weaknesses and shortcomings, obscuring its true potential. Italy is often portrayed as a country to flee from, with young people emigrating in search of opportunities elsewhere, suggesting that Italy is a land devoid of future. Furthermore, Italy is represented as a periphery of Europe, subordinate to central powers like Germany and France, ignoring its strategic role and centrality in the Mediterranean. Sometimes, even the immense Italian cultural heritage is seen as an obstacle, as a burden that hinders innovation and progress. This narrative has a corrosive effect, undermining Italians’ trust in their country and fueling a vision of dependency and backwardness.

The Real Italy

The reality of Italy is quite different from what is often described. The country possesses extraordinary resources that many other states envy.

Firstly, Italy is the second largest manufacturer in Europe, with a network of extremely competitive small and medium enterprises, making it a pillar of the European economy and a globally relevant player in the manufacturing sector.

Moreover, its cultural heritage is the richest in the world: no other country can boast a concentration of art, history, and culture similar to it, recognized as a unique asset on a global level.

Italy is also one of the countries with the highest private wealth, with over 8,500 billion euros owned by its citizens, a figure that far exceeds the public debt that is often discussed in economic debates.

Finally, its strategic geographical position in the heart of the Mediterranean gives the country a crucial role as a natural bridge between Europe, Africa, and Asia, an opportunity that, if properly valued, could transform it into a nerve center for trade, culture, and geopolitics.

Some order of magnitude

Considering the Total Wealth/Public Debt ratio, Italy ranks around fifth in the world.

Where intangible factors such as (geostrategic positioning, cultural assets, and natural capital) are to be considered, the values reported in the following table are obtained.

Italy is indeed the third largest industrial manufacturer in Europe, the 7th country in the world for the ratio of total wealth/debt, and where one wishes to correct this data to consider geostrategic, cultural, and natural factors, this position is destined to improve (estimates conducted without claims of scientific validity indicate a 5th place).

A toxic narrative: Cui Prodest?

The narrative that paints Italy as peripheral and weak is not accidental. It serves very specific interests:

1. Consolidate the economic and political bond: Presenting Italy as fragile justifies the imposition of external constraints, limiting its decision-making autonomy and keeping it in a state of subordination.

2. Limit industrial competitiveness: A narrative of decline reduces the perception of the strength of Italian industry, paving the way for competing economies that want to maintain their dominant position.
3. Deplete human resources and talents: The emigration of young people, driven by this vision, deprives the Country of human capital, enriching other nations instead.

Italy is not the periphery of anything. It is a country rich in unique resources, capable of facing global challenges from a position of strength. However, to do so, it must unmask the narratives that paint it as a weak and declining country, always asking itself: cui prodest?

The answer is clear: not to Italy. It is time for the country to regain control of its “symbolic resources” and of a governance oriented towards national interests, telling itself for what it really is: a central, strategic, creative, and extraordinarily resilient nation.