The text Agostino by Alberto Moravia discusses a period of time during a vacation between a mother and her son. For me, while the novel was short, I felt that the author successfully created a world that presents different themes, such as maternal relationships and the process of maturing. The text gives specific emphasis to the relationship between the mother and the son. The relationship between the two characters seemed strange to me at first, as the bond between the two seemed incredibly strong and has a strong emotional attachment. Such as when the narrator discussed the time spent with his mother before the two went their separate ways. When talking about his mother, the narrator speaks such as; “all the bathers on the beach seemed to be watching, admiring his mother and envying him,” (Agostino, 3). From the start of the text, I felt that the relationship between the narrator and the mother was of a different nature. The relationship between the two is also shown when the narrator states that they would “follow her anywhere, even to the bottom of the sea,” reflecting the narrator’s dependence and attachment to the mother (Agostino, 4).

Though, the act of growing up is shown in the novel as the narrator spends time with other kids while his mother is away with a “younger man,” (Agostino, 10). Though, it seems as though the kids that the narrator is hanging out with have different life experiences compared to the narrator. Such as; when Berto asks the narrator that “you don’t smoke?” and later states that the narrator does not smoke since his mother does not allow him to (Agostino, 20). Therefore, there is a clear boundary between the narrators and the group of kids that they spend time with within the novel. The distinction between the two worlds is reinforced when Berto calls the narrator a “crybaby” and states that the narrator should “go back to your mamma,” (Agostino, 22). The distinction between these two worlds and these two different groups allows for the narrator to experience a new world. In this case, the new world somewhat forces the main character to grow up and gain new experiences. Additionally, the experiences that the narrator goes through with the group of kids includes the fact that he did these events without the influence of his mother. Without the mother’s influence in this scenario, this allows the narrator to grow without adult influence and satisfy the curiosity that one would have.

The question that I would ask my peers is: How does the mother’s influence in the novel reflect the limitations of the main character?

-Muskan Shukla