Carmen Gallo Praises Anne Carson and the Power of Imagination

Carmen Gallo, winner of the Strega Poetry Prize 2026, praised the Canadian poet Anne Carson — laureate of the 2026 Nobel Prize in Literature — describing her as a "maestra" capable of reigniting imagination and of teaching how to use literary tradition to investigate the present, according to ANSA report.

Summary of the Statement — Carmen Gallo on Anne Carson

In an interview, Carmen Gallo stated that Anne Carson functions as a teacher who shows ways to read and write today, drawing on classical heritage without clinging to formal binaries. The statement arises in the context of Gallo receiving the Strega Poetry Prize 2026 and draws attention to the dialogue between contemporary poetics and ancient traditions, according to ANSA coverage.

About "Procne Machine" — Strega Poetry Prize, Italian poetry

The winning book for the Strega Poetry Prize is Procne Machine (Einaudi), an 87-page volume with a listed cover price of €11.00, according to ANSA. Gallo describes the work as giving voice to the long arc of two sisters from Greek myth — particularly the figure of Procne — to a present marked by violence against women's bodies. The work mobilizes classical figures and historical transformations to problematize contemporary issues of gender and power, positioning itself in the field of Italian poetry that dialogues with classical tradition and current social debates.

Carson’s Vision, According to Gallo — Anne Carson and the Tradition

Gallo emphasized that Anne Carson frequently investigates “outside established binaries” and often “from a feminine perspective,” as reported by ANSA. She also said she studied and taught Carson in university courses — especially in recent years — indicating the growing presence of the Canadian poet’s work in Italian and international curricula. For Gallo, Carson’s lesson is not only stylistic but methodological: using literary tradition as a tool to understand the present and reopen imaginative possibilities.

Who is Carmen Gallo — brief profile

Born in Naples in 1983, Carmen Gallo is 43 years old (as of 2026) and a professor of English literature at La Sapienza University in Rome. Her academic path includes translations and editorship of authors such as William Shakespeare and T.S. Eliot, in addition to studies on the metaphysical poetry of John Donne, ANSA notes. The combination of critical activity, translation, and poetic production helps situate Gallo as a natural interlocutor in the debate on how contemporary Italian poetry dialogues with tradition and innovation.

Relevance for Brazilian readers and Italian descendants

Gallo’s remarks interest Raízes Italianas readers for two main reasons:

• they highlight a moment of international visibility for contemporary Italian poetry, with prizes that draw attention to authors active in debates on gender, class, and tradition;
• they bring Brazilian readers and Italian descendants closer to a literary path that crosses translation, classical studies, and contemporary poetry — areas of shared interest for those following Italian culture and the work of literary translation.

Readers following our sections can contextualize this news within other coverage of culture and intellectual life in Italy, such as in the Italy News and Life in Italy pages. For practical information tied to the Italian-Brazilian community, resources on Italian Citizenship can be useful to understand the Italian cultural presence abroad.

Conclusion Carmen Gallo’s remarks about Anne Carson reinforce the role of poetics that recover and rethink classical tradition to read the present. With Procne Machine awarded the Strega Poetry Prize 2026, attention to contemporary Italian poetry and its dialogues with international voices like Carson grows, according to ANSA.

Source: ANSA