Catholic religious orders that have education as part of their mission have often used visions of the afterlife in theatre productions as vehicles to transmit a message of conversion, especially to those who, because of age or illiteracy, would not benefit as much from Scripture readings or complex sermons. In this article, I look at how such visions of the blessed and the damned, of heaven and hell, of angels and demons, were used in educational theatre in Italy by the Jesuits in the 16th century and the Salesian sisters in the 20th century. The historical background for the Jesuit and Salesian plays I analyze also reveals a propagandistic layer of meaning in their representation of the afterworld, as the Jesuits’ tragedies date to the years of the Counter-reformation, while the Salesian sisters’ plays belong to era of the cold war. Thus, the Jesuit and Salesian theatrical depictions of heaven and hell provide insight not only into the religious understanding of the eras, but also into the social and political concerns of the times in which they were composed, as well as the diverse educational messages transmitted to young men and young women.

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JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.. American Association of Teachers of Italian is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Italica.Oresteia has recently been reread by feminist critics as one of the first examples-if not the example-of a literary work that staged the passage from maternal rights to paternal rights. Froma I. Zeitlin has found that the "evolution of civilization" presented in the trilogy corresponds to a movement "from female dominance to male dominance, or ... from 'matriarchy' to 'patriarchy"' (149-51). Nancy S. Rabinowitz has suggested that in the Oresteia Clytemnestra is depicted as a dragoness, "a monstrous creature of mixed nature," while Orestes is presented as the hero who has to slay the monster and destroy the chaotic, perverted world she represents in order to establish a harmonious world order "ruled by persuasion and not force" (160). Sue-Ellen Case, in turn, has noted that "the Oresteia enacts the 'battle of the sexes,' using Athenian cultural and political codes to prescribe that women must lose the battle" (Feminism 13) and that the conclusion of the play inscribes not only the beginning of democracy, but also "decisions about gender roles and the rules governing procreation" (Feminism 15). Luce Irigaray has added that even in modern society matricide continues, supported by the complicity of women enslaved to the law of the father:The mythology that underlies patriarchy has not changed. Everything described in the Oresteia is still taking place. Here and there we still see the emergence of some useful Athenas, who spring whole from the brain of the Father-King, dedicated solely to his service and that of the men in power.... The murder of the mother is rewarded by letting the son go scot free, by burying the madness of women-and burying women in madness-and by introducing the image of the virgin goddess, born of the Father, obedient to his laws at the expense of the mother. (12-13)1 Given these premises, it is not surprising that contemporary women writers have deemed it necessary to stage new versions of the Oresteia in order to present the viewpoint of the female protagonists, as well as to denounce the fact that the murder of the rebellious woman continues.2 Dacia Maraini's play I sogni di Clitennestra exemplifies women writers' attempt to modernize and transform Aeschylus's trilogy. She ITALICA Volume 72 Number 3 (1995) This content downloaded from 128.235.251.160 on Tue, 3 Feb 2015 22:25:04 PM All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions THE ORESTEIA ACCORDING TO MARAINI 341has often commented on both her interest in myths and her need to re-write them: "The myths that we carry around with us from childhood on," she has affirmed, "are the male ones, ...