Calvino's Modern Retelling of Charlemagne's Romance: A Prankish Exploration of Desire and Futility

Calvino's prankishness creates a modern significance for the late-life romance of Charlemagne by means of retelling: the bewitched emperor transforms into a series of mysteriously desire-ridden figures, entangled in various erotic relationships, caught in an endless pursuit of futility. The old man, finally, stands as a solitary silhouette by the lake, symbolizing modern individuals seeking eternal emptiness through their attachment to natural love. Ancient legends lose their individual meaning as texts, as Calvino inscribes his own name at the beginning of this story. The reader becomes the author, and the story gains new life.