Did Umberto Eco consider himself a novelist first or an academic scholar?

Umberto Eco considered himself primarily an academic scholar rather than a novelist. While he achieved widespread acclaim and popularity as a novelist, particularly with works like "The Name of the Rose" and "Foucault's Pendulum," Eco's background and training were in academia.

Eco was a distinguished semiotician, philosopher, and literary critic, with expertise in a wide range of disciplines, including semiotics, aesthetics, medieval studies, and cultural analysis. He held academic positions at universities in Italy and abroad, teaching courses on semiotics, communication theory, and literary criticism.

Throughout his career, Eco maintained a strong presence in academic circles, publishing numerous scholarly articles, essays, and books on topics ranging from semiotic theory and literary criticism to media studies and cultural analysis. His academic contributions had a profound impact on fields such as semiotics, aesthetics, and cultural studies, earning him recognition as one of the leading intellectuals of his time.

While Eco's novels brought him fame and popular acclaim, he often emphasized that his primary identity was that of an academic scholar. He viewed his novels as extensions of his scholarly interests, incorporating elements of semiotic theory, intertextuality, and cultural analysis into his fictional works. Even in his novels, Eco's scholarly background and intellectual curiosity were evident, reflecting his deep engagement with ideas and his commitment to exploring complex themes and narratives.

Overall, while Umberto Eco was celebrated as both a novelist and an academic scholar, he considered his scholarly pursuits to be his primary vocation, with his novels serving as creative expressions of his intellectual interests and passions.