Università Roma Tre

War and Peace in Renaissance Literature

Renaissance is first and foremost an age of war, in which war enters powerfully into everyday life with a violence hitherto unknown and, by contrast, the past is mythologized as an age of peace and prosperity. The course will follow representations of war and peace in Renaissance literature, focusing primarily on epic-chivalric literature, which makes war its driving force (Pulci, Boiardo, Ariosto, Tasso, and also examples of other forms of octava rima such as war poems), but also examining historical works (Machiavelli and Guicciardini) and theatrical works (Ruzante’s Parlamento).

Syllabus for attending students

Handouts supplied by the professor and downloadable from Teams/Moodle or available from the photocopy shop in front of the Department of Studi Umanistici:
- excerpts from: Luigi Pulci, Morgante; Matteo Maria Boiardo, Inamoramento de Orlando; Ludovico Ariosto, Orlando furioso; Torquato Tasso, Gerusalemme liberata; Niccolò Machiavelli, L’arte della guerra; Francesco Guicciardini, Storia d’Italia; Ruzante, Parlamento di Ruzante che l’era vegnù de campo;
-critical bibliography

Syllabus for not-attendig students

Non-attending students are required to add to the syllabus:
- Nicolò Maldina, Ariosto e la battaglia della Polesella: guerra e poesia nella Ferrara di inizio Cinquecento, Bologna, Il Mulino, 2016
-additional handouts provided by the professor, downloadable from Teams/Moodle or available from the photocopy shop in front of the Department of Studi Umanistici