Storie di donne

Abstract

The paper explores the anthropological significance of the life stories of women from Salento. Framed within an anthropology of listening, it highlights the epistemological role of the voice-its sound, rhythm, intonation, and dialectal texture-as a primary means of knowledge, often diminished by transcription. The reflections developed here stem in part from the talks delivered on 12 and 13 September 2025 in Tricase within the School of the History of Popular Traditions organized by Liquilab. These narratives, emerging outside dominant literary and media circuits, place everyday life at the center, revealing poverty and suffering, lack of affection and the denial of childhood, but also resilience, autonomy, the acquisition of skills, the capacity to confront hardship, the discovery of other forms of love and trust, courage, and practical abilities. The study shows how oral archives preserve not only content but also vocal presence and cultural nuances, arguing that women's voices constitute a vast, polyphonic history still unwritten and calling for renewed scholarly attention to oral heritage as a living and transformative resource.