Charles Leavitt

Charles Leavitt is an Associate Professor of Italian at the University of Notre Dame, specializing in modern and contemporary Italian literature and cinema, post-war Italian history, and the intersections between the Italian and African-American experience. He has been a Kellogg Institute faculty fellow since 2020 and serves as co-editor of the Italianist film issue. Leavitt is also a visiting research fellow of the University of Reading.

His research focuses on Italian neorealism, post-war Italian cultural history, and transnational connections between Italian intellectuals and the African-American struggle for civil rights. Leavitt has made significant contributions to understanding the concept of 'impegno nero' - the tendency of Italian intellectuals to unite their arguments for Italian social and cultural renewal with their condemnations of American racism. His work examines how post-war Italian intellectuals engaged with African-American literature and social movements as part of Italy's reconstruction efforts.

Leavitt's scholarly output demonstrates a consistent pattern of examining how Italian cultural production served as both aesthetic expression and social commentary, particularly how Italian neorealism emerged as a cultural response to post-war conditions. His research reveals the intricate connections between Italian intellectual history and global social movements, especially the ways Italian thinkers used American racial dynamics as a lens to examine their own society's challenges.

• 2020 Book Prize in Visual Studies, Film and Media from the American Association of Italian Studies
• Finalist in American nonfiction for The Bridge / Il Ponet literary prize
• Outstanding Contribution to Teaching Excellence Award from the University of Reading
• Kaneb Distinguished Graduate Teaching Award from the University of Notre Dame
• Fellow of the United Kingdom's Higher Education Academy

Leavitt advises graduate students including Mustafa Hess and has received research support through the Kellogg Institute. His current research includes examining 'The War Between Black and White: Racial Conflict in American-Occupied Italy' (2021-2022 grant). His book 'Italian Neorealism: A Cultural History' (University of Toronto Press, 2020) has received significant acclaim in the field, winning the American Association of Italian Studies Book Prize in Visual Studies, Film and Media.