First editions

This section provides access to facsimile reproductions of the first editions of Pirandello's works. As is well known, the Agrigento-born author published his critical, narrative, and theatrical works in book form or in magazines on several occasions, later collecting them in Novelle per un anno (Short Stories for a Year), Maschere nude (Naked Masks), and the definitive editions of his essays and novels. The poetic texts were not subject to any reordering, but reading their first editions is certainly of considerable interest.

The so-called Principes (first editions) therefore attest to different states and stages of Pirandello's writing, which underwent stylistic, lexical, and semantic evolution over time, often of absolute importance. These editions are now out of print and generally unknown to readers, who have only been able to enjoy these texts in the versions included in the author's major collections.

Reading the Principes is like coming into contact with a primitive Pirandello, providing a unique experience of the original impulse behind his writing.