I’m Not Scared

Over the course of I’m Not Scared, Michele, the protagonist, loses his innocence as he is faced with morally complex decisions that are far beyond what a child his age is prepared to deal with. Initially, Michele’s life is filled with childhood games with his friends. The isolated setting of Acqua Traverse, Michele’s rural Italian village, acts as a playground where the children are free to explore. However, this freedom to explore ultimately…

Trust is an important concept in I’m Not Afraid, and it is regularly called into question when the novel’s characters come up against moral dilemmas. When Michele first finds Filippo in the hole, he decides to keep his discovery a secret from everyone except Michele’s father, who he trusts implicitly. However, before Michele gets a chance to tell his father what he learned, he discovers that his father is partially responsible for…

I'm Not Scared presents a society where masculinity goes hand in hand with dominance, control, and a willingness to use violence to assert authority. Through the interactions between the men in the novel, the novel critiques the aspects of masculinity that lead to destructive behavior and moral compromise. Unlike some of the more domineering figures in the novel, Michele’s father embodies a complex form of masculinity that is both caring and authoritarian. As a father…