The discussion on Italian identity has recently been brought to the attention of the public opinion in Italy as an outcome of the so-called “fine della prima Repubblica” (“end of the first Republic”). Literary identity has soon become a core issue, in order to promote a reflection on the idea of Italy independently of its political unity. This essay aims to reconstruct the various positions pro and contra the hypothesis of a literary identity, which can be seen, on the one hand, as an outcome of Risorgimento and Fascist propaganda, but also, on the other hand, as a means to overcome political divides and develop a shared rather than ethnical community.