"Io so": A Reading of Roberto Saviano's Gomorra

This article addresses the debate on Gomorra discussing, in particular, the textual hybridity of Saviano's book. Drawing on J. L. Austin's philosophy of language, the author argues that this controversial characteristic is due not so much to the blending of different genres as to the presence of two distinct pragmatic dimensions, a constative and a performative dimension. The constative effectiveness and the performative efficacy of the text are crucial aspects of Gomorra and, as it is shown, both aspects derive from the beneficial indiscipline that Saviano exhibits in mixing together discursive activities and purposes which are usually kept separate.