Federico Antonelli, cultural counselor of the Italian Embassy in China Photo: Chen Tao/GT

In an exclusive interview with the Global Times on July 15, Federico Antonelli, cultural counselor of the Italian Embassy in China, said that he has a very strong impression of Chinese literature, especially about Chinese literary classics, as well as Chinese philosophy.

"As you know, I'm from Italy, I'm from the south of Europe, from the origin of Western Civilization, so at school, we also study Italian and some Greek classics. When I studied Chinese classics, I overall compared these two classics, partially the great philosophy arrived between the fifth through to the 12th century BC, and this is in the same period in the West and the East. I always appreciate Chinese classic literature and have tried to find the common ground," said Antonelli. 

From Antonelli's point of view, there are definitely common themes in Italian and Chinese poetry. Both talk about daily life and sentiment, as well as the psychology of the people. In all the works of poetry, they have quite similar touches in the Western and Eastern cultures. I can find all the fundamental topics of human life and the humanity. 

For instance, on topics related to the remembrance of the native village, which is the common feature in poems by Chinese poet Li Bai and Italian poet Giacomo Leopardi. Both wrote poems recalling the time when they were young. "When we talk about Chinese poetry, we go immediately to the Tang Dynasty [618-907] - the Great Tang Poetry was written about. Li Bai is a major figure of Chinese poetry and I like his works very much," said Antonelli. 

To Antonelli, "Quiet Night Thoughts" by Li Bai, and "Il Passero Solitario" (or The Lonely Sparrow) by Giacomo Leopardi explore themes of loneliness, isolation, and the passage of time - a common theme in life. 

"Every time I read this poem by Li Bai, my heart goes to Italy," said Antonelli. When he reads "The Lonely Sparrow," he pictures someone who lives alone outside one's country. Putting these two poems together, it is obvious to see the common ground of poetry between Italy and China.

Antonelli has lived in China for more than two decades in different periods of his life. He spent his childhood in Beijing. Antonelli started his career tenure at the Italian Embassy as a legal counselor, and now works as a cultural counselor. He can speak fluent Putonghua (standard Chinese). 

To enhance bilateral literary exchanges, in terms of the translation of the classics, this year Italy and China launched the implementation of the translation project, which, as part of the multiple bilateral cooperation documents, was signed and jointly witnessed by the two heads of state in November 2024. 

"I Canti" [The Poems] by Giacomo Leopardi and an anthological selection from the treatise "Discorsi e dimostrazioni matematiche intorno a due nuove scienze"  (Discourses and Mathematical Demonstrations concerning two New Sciences) by Galileo Galilei were selected by the translation committee to be better known to the Chinese public. 

"More or less all the important works of Italian literature has already been translated into Chinese, but in poetry, there is still some space of artwork to be translated. I think this is one of the main contributions for the 55th anniversary of bilateral relations," Counselor Antonelli introduced. 

Moreover, the Italian Embassy has been supporting exhibition tours in China. 

Following the presence of the Marco Polo, an exhibition titled Journey of Knowledge - Marco Polo's "The Million'"and His Legacy between East and West was launched in Beijing. In addition, Marco Polo had visited Chengdu and Hangzhou. All these cities can also showcase the richness of Chinese culture and its diversity. That is the magnificent travel that we make through exhibition and travel for knowledge, which happens to be the key message in the exhibition, said Counselor Antonelli.