Renaissance in Italy, Volume 4 Italian Literature, Part 1   By: John Addington Symonds (1840-1893)

Symonds' deep dive into the world of Italian literature during the Renaissance is a captivating and thorough exploration of this influential period. His detailed analysis and descriptions of key literary works, as well as the cultural and historical context in which they were created, provide readers with a comprehensive understanding of the significance of Italian literature in shaping the artistic and intellectual landscape of the time. Symonds' writing is scholarly yet accessible, making this volume an invaluable resource for both academic study and casual reading. Overall, Renaissance in Italy, Volume 4 Italian Literature, Part 1 is a must-read for anyone interested in the rich literary traditions of Italy and the Renaissance era.

First Page:

This work on the Renaissance in Italy, of which I now give the last two volumes to the public, was designed and executed on the plan of an essay or analytical inquiry, rather than on that which is appropriate to a continuous history. Each of its four parts the Age of the Despots , the Revival of Learning , the Fine Arts , and Italian Literature stood in my mind for a section; each chapter for a paragraph; each paragraph for a sentence. At the same time, it was intended to make the first three parts subsidiary and introductory to the fourth, for which accordingly a wider space and a more minute method of treatment were reserved. The first volume was meant to explain the social and political conditions of Italy; the second to relate the exploration of the classical past which those conditions necessitated, and which determined the intellectual activity of the Italians; the third to exhibit the bias of this people toward figurative art, and briefly to touch upon its various manifestations; in order that, finally, a correct point of view might be obtained for judging of their national literature in its strength and limitations... Continue reading book >>