Places that are the ‘Left Behind’. Terni past and present

Journal title SOCIETÀ E STORIA
Author/s Roberta Garruccio
Publishing Year 2026 Issue 2026/192
Language Italian Pages 10 P. 352-361 File size 270 KB
DOI 10.3280/SS2026-192012
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Alessandro Portelli’s book, Dal rosso al nero, draws on most recent literature about “left behind places” where the evaporation of prosperity, economic decline, and social fragmentation are intertwined with a marked distrust of traditional political references. Terni is presented as a prime example of this phenomenon, and Dal rosso al nero is regarded as a model of “history of the present”. The article highlights how the city’s industrial crisis has precipitated a more extensive downward spiral, the most evident political expression of which is the revolt against conventional workingclass political representation. The article examines the relationships between voting behavior, the decline of manufacturing employ ment, the expansion of an unskilled and precarious service sector, the transformation of the working class, and the city’s pursuit of a new narrative for itself. The conclusion emphasises a pervasive “fragility syndrome” in Terni, characterised by the interplay of structural elements with demographic and social factors, which collectively perpetuate a vicious circle.

Keywords: Places left behind, Terni, deindustrialization, working class, economic and social vulnerability.

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Roberta Garruccio, Leggere i luoghi “lasciati indietro”. Terni in una storia del presente in "SOCIETÀ E STORIA " 192/2026, pp 352-361, DOI: 10.3280/SS2026-192012