LA «QUALITÀ DEI TEMPI»

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LA «QUALITÀ DEI TEMPI»
LETTERATURA E POLITICA A FIRENZE (1512-1527)

The book investigates the relationship between literature and political action in Florence during the years of the Medici Restoration through the analysis of several exemplary works. The first chapter examines Iustitia, a vernacular comedy by the humanist Eufrosino Bonini (1513-1514), who casually rewrites Aristophanes' Pluto to stage a eulogy for the Medici, who had just returned to the city. The second chapter comments on and publishes an unpublished poem by Bernardo Filostrato, which mourns the death of Giuliano de' Medici (1516); the work, entitled Mestissimo poema, imitates Poliziano's Stanze and outlines a complete idealization of the character, who in Florence had not distinguished himself for any particular merits. The third chapter examines Machiavelli's Vita di Castruccio Castracani (1520), with which the secretary attempts to secure the support of the friends of the Orti Oricellari. The fourth chapter focuses on the failed anti-Medici coup of 1522; the episode is reconstructed on the basis of highly heterogeneous sources (e.g. the historical surveys of Filippo de' Nerli, Iacopo Pitti and Iacopo Nardi; the Discorso by Niccolò Martelli; the Dialoghi by Antonio Brucioli; the rhymes of Cosimo Rucellai and Luigi Alamanni). The final chapter analyses Guicciardini's autobiographical production following the Sack of Rome (1527): the Consolatoria, the Accusatoria and the Defensoria demonstrate how the tools of rhetoric are capable of distorting objective reality in favour of a personal reconstruction of historical events. The approach with which the investigation is conducted combines the critical interpretative method and philological scrutiny. Only by making these two levels interact is it possible to grasp the profound meaning of the literary operations of 1512-1527, which have their primary reasons rooted in political passion, in the need to redeem bitter defeats, in the hope of bringing about a turning point in Florence or, more simply, of obtaining a benefit from those in power.

Author

Matteo Bosisio is a visiting professor of Italian Literature at the University of Milan. He specializes in Medieval and Renaissance literature. His latest books include Mercanti e civiltà mercantile nel «Decameron» (2020) and Il teatro “pre-classicista” nelle corti padane (2022).