Pasolini, Pier Paolo

Related Category: Italian Literature: Biographies

(pyĕr pä´ōlō päsōlē´nē), 1922–75, Italian writer and film director. A former Roman Catholic and a Marxist, Pasolini brought to his work a combination of religious and social consciousness. His early works, including the novel A Violent Life (1957; tr. 1985) and the film Accatone (1961), deal with the grim effects of poverty and squalor. His other films include The Gospel According to St. Matthew (1964), Oedipus Rex (1967), and Teorema (1968). His later films, which are imagistic and erotic adaptations of classical literature, include The Decameron (1970), The Canterbury Tales (1972), and Arabian Nights (1974). His final work, Salo (1977), based on a Marquis de Sade novel, 120 Days of Sodom, took place in Fascist Italy and generated immense controversy. Shortly after the completion of Salo, Pasolini was murdered under violent and mysterious circumstances by two street hustlers.