L’Attila dei pesci e dei pescatori

L’Attila dei pesci e dei pescatori is the epithet given to the gigantic Pesce-cane, turning its record of destruction and voracity into a compact measure of the terror it inspires. The name frames the sea monster not simply as a large predator but as a recurring force feared by both fish and fishermen.

Meaning and Referent

The narrator identifies the creature emerging from the water as the same gigantic Pesce-cane remembered earlier in the story. Its nickname is explicitly grounded in two traits: the massacres attributed to it and its insatiable appetite. The comparison to Attila intensifies the sense of devastation, while the paired reference to fish and fishermen makes the creature’s danger reach across the marine world and those who depend on it.

Use in the Encounter

The epithet returns at a moment when Pinocchio is swimming toward a white reef and the monster rises to meet him. The narrator pauses to ask the reader to identify the creature, then supplies its familiar name; this brief recognition connects the immediate threat to the Pesce-cane’s established reputation. The nickname thus works as narrative shorthand: before the encounter has run its course, the reader is reminded that Pinocchio faces a predator associated with repeated slaughter and limitless hunger.