Nicolo Ammaniti's I M Not Scared

Nicolo Ammaniti’s coming of age novel, ‘I’m not scared’, emphasises people’s capacity for evil and self-destruction however it also demonstrates certain people’s ability to show compassion and selflessness. Michele learns that cruelty exists in the real world and not just in his imagination when his father tells him that: “It’s men you should be afraid of, not monsters.” Bullying and poverty, which are explored throughout the novel, also illustrate man’s ability to be evil and to cause self-destruction; this idea is enhanced by the influence of corrupt adults and a sense of having to prove oneself. However this also demonstrates the idea that people are capable of making their own moral choices and are able to show compassion and selflessness
The novel focusses on the idea that people’s ability to be evil is also enhanced by people, especially men, feeling the need to prove themselves, to be brave and strong and powerful. This idea is demonstrated when Sergio is leading a meeting between the adults who captured Filippo and they are talking about what they should do. It is a pivotal scene because it is when Michele finally discovers what his father has to do with the boy in the hole. Fillipo’s mother appears on the television issuing a plea to Filippo’s captors to release him. Even though Pino, Michele’s father, has a son he shows no signs of sympathising with the woman and in order to prove his manliness and bravado in front of the other men he: “Made the scissors sign with his fingers. ‘Two ears we’ll cut off. Two.’” This proves that he may believe and know that what they are doing is wrong but because of the bullying by the men from the North, mainly their representative Sergio, he feels he has to prove himself and does the wrong thing in