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Today we talk about one of the most important cultural figures in all of Italian history.

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He is an author and it is an extraordinary historical and literary case: according to legend, he studied

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so much that he died leaning his head on his papers; he is the first human being

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in history about whom we have received so much information, and from first-hand sources at that;

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and he is also the author of one of the most influential works of Italian literature,

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to the point that not even Shakespeare would have been 100% the Shakespeare we all know,

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if it hadn't been for the work in question. I'm talking about Francesco Petrarca,

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who with Dante and Boccaccio is part of the so-called Three Crowns, the three major authors

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of the late Middle Ages in Florence, fundamental in the history of the Italian language and literature.

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This is the second video in this regard, after the one from a few years ago on Dante: naturally,

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in the future there will be a third, on Giovanni Boccaccio. But let's get straight to Petrarca:

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a stop in his world is an almost obligatory step, if you want to start studying and

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understanding Italian literature, because this author has forever influenced not only the fate

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of the literature of the Bel Paese, but also the fate of literary language in general,

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and in particular the language of poetry. Initially, therefore,

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we will focus on the author's life and his fortune, understood as success. Then we will take

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a look at his best known and most studied work, namely the Canzoniere; and, finally,

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we will try to understand the cultural, literary and linguistic legacy that

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Petrarca left us. I'm Davide and this is Podcast Italiano, a channel for those who learn or love

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Italian. If you learn the language of Dante, Petrarca and Boccaccio, you will find the transcription of everything

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I say on my website. I'll leave you the link in the description. And if you need it, turn on the subtitles.

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Francesco Petrarca was born in 1304 in Arezzo, Tuscany; between 19 and 20 July,

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according to tradition. He is the son of a notary banished from Florence, where

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great political battles had raged in previous decades. These are the same battles

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that led to Dante's exile, which – by the way – Petrarch's father knew about.

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But let's return immediately to our Francesco Petrarca. Already as a child, he became a traveler: in 1312,

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in fact, his father took the family to live in Avignon, in southern France, where

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Petrarch was educated by an Italian who was himself an exile. Access to these studies was not common:

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the very young Francesco was born into a fairly wealthy condition, and his father did not deny him

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the purchase of several manuscripts useful for his studies. Consider that we are in the 14th century,

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before the invention of printing: often, to have access to a text, the richest

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could commission its reproduction to a copyist, who copied everything; otherwise,

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you had to directly purchase the original or a copy already produced previously,

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or even - think about it - copy the text yourself, if possible - think about the effort -: in all cases,

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it was an investment, often of money or , alternatively, of time.

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A few years later, Petrarca began studying law in Montpellier, still in France,

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which however he tackled reluctantly. Always in the period of his early youth, he

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also visited Rimini, Venice and, above all, Bologna, a very important destination for honing

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his literary skills. In fact, at the time, the city was a very important center

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for the radiation of poetry in the vernacular, that is, in this specific case, in one of the many

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Italian languages ​​that had evolved from Latin. Incidentally today, in Italian,

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vulgar typically means coarse, rude, scurrilous or, in other words, rude. In

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technical jargon, however, this word indicates, especially when talking about the Middle Ages, because

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then in the future we start talking about dialects, it indicates, I was saying, the languages ​​spoken by the vulgar,

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that is, by the people, as opposed to the higher and more literary language noble, which was Latin.

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In 1326, there is a turning point: the father of our young scholar dies, leading the family to a

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period of economic difficulty. Precisely on this occasion Petrarch definitively abandons

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he studied law and, perhaps, in turn began to produce works in the vernacular.

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He soon settled in Avignon, where at the time, among other things, the seat of the

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papal curia was located. As some of you may know, in fact, for much of the 14th century the Pope did not reside

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in Rome, but rather in Avignon, France. Speaking of religion... In Avignon, Petrarch

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decides to take the minor orders, which, in short, represent an affiliation to the Church

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which involves some tasks, but, above all, which guarantees all the economic benefits that at the time

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were reserved for men of church. Smart, our Francesco. This practice was actually

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not rare, precisely because it did not require great effort, but it gave considerable advantages. In this way,

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Petrarch basically frees himself from major economic worries,

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and has the opportunity to do what he likes. The years of youth are characterized,

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at least according to Petrarca, by a certain abandonment to worldly life - even if we must consider

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that we are talking about the criteria of a severe man, who wants to give a certain image of himself,

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and we will talk about it later. In this period, perhaps, Petrarch also indulged in love

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for a woman, about whom, once again, we know little: some scholars believe they have

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even found her identity, while others strongly doubt it. In any case,

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this relationship will later be taken up in Petrarch's most important work, so let's keep it in mind.

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Meanwhile, the years pass, and our Francesco becomes closer, thanks to his culture and

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knowledge, to important personalities, to visit whom he makes several other trips.

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We are now around the 1930s when we see big steps forward in studies too:

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Petrarch, in fact, was very close to the texts of antiquity, and constantly tried to

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understand and analyze the Latin texts. It even produces editions, for example of

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a work by the famous Latin author Livy; and, perhaps even more surprisingly, he discovered the

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manuscripts of some very important Latin texts, such as that of Cicero's Pro Archia.

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At the same time, these texts served as teachers for Petrarch, who absorbed the subtleties of the

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Latin language and reproduced them with mastery. A mastery to which his contemporaries did not remain

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indifferent: in 1341, Petrarch was crowned poet in Rome, in the Campidoglio, by none other than

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King Robert of Anjou, who at the time was the sovereign of the Kingdom of Naples. This rite was intended to

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explicitly recall the Latin tradition, in which, according to the information available at the time,

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it was customary to honor poetic glory in this way. And Petrarch is crowned

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precisely for his production in Latin, which was considered the most beautiful: for now,

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his verses in the vernacular are not yet ready to shine, even if, as they say,

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something is cooking. Meanwhile, a laurel wreath

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is placed on our author's head , making him, so to speak, a VIP of his era; and with good reason,

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because we do not forget that Petrarch is one of the greatest authors in the Latin language of his time.

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But our Petrarch does not rest on his laurels: the journeys continue, thanks to

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ecclesiastical benefits and, even more so now, thanks to the protection of the powerful, who are happy

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to support an intellectual of this caliber. In 1348, when Italy and Europe are on

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their knees due to a plague epidemic, Petrarca overcomes the crisis unscathed, but the woman

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he loves - remember? – but he doesn't survive. This event will also be very important for what

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we will say later, so let's keep it in mind. In 1350, the poet finally visited Florence:

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the family's exile had been lifted in the meantime, and there were friends and

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admirers in the city. Furthermore, our poet meets another very important writer for his

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era and for future centuries, the third crown we will talk about, namely Giovanni Boccaccio,

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also influencing his artistic production. The travels between Italy and France still do not

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stop, until, in 1352, Petrarch definitively leaves France for Milan. In

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that year, in fact, Innocent VI became pope; and relations with Petrarca were not

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exactly the best. Remember that the Pope was in France at the time;

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so our friend decides it's time to pack his bags and return to his homeland.

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Starting from his stay in Milan, his literary activity grew further, even if there was no

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shortage of travel and political commitments. The powerful of the time did not mind having

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a great intellectual at their service, nor entrusting him, for example, with diplomatic missions.

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Over time, however, Petrarch decided that he wanted to dedicate himself to his studies in peace:

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starting from 1369-70 he settled, as far as possible, in Arquà, not far from Padua,

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in Veneto, where he died in 1374. Today, in his honor, Arquà is a

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village also known by the name of Arquà Petrarca, where it is still possible

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to visit the house where the great poet lived. Great, yes – and now we will see why – to the point that,

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after his death, admirers and scholars began to look for his books. And to this day

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a huge amount of material arrives: works, notes, letters. Letters then carefully copied and,

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always along the lines of the great Latin models, designed to be actually read

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by posterity. Petrarch knew that his letters would be read, and for this very reason

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we cannot blindly trust their content: the author wanted to outline an

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ideal autobiography, in order to show the world and posterity that he had retraced as much as

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possible the steps of a great ideal Roman. Throughout the 14th century and part of the 15th,

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Petrarch was admired as a fine Latin poet; until something changes:

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starting from the second half of the fifteenth century, attention for the Latin Petrarch decreases, while the fame

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of the poet in the vernacular increases. Soon, our poet becomes the poet,

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the unsurpassed model of poetry, both in the Italian peninsula and outside.

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But thanks to which work, exactly? The work in question is typically called

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Canzoniere, a generic word which, in Italian, indicates a collection of poems.

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It goes without saying that Petrarch's has become the songbook par excellence, and this is

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the title of the work. In reality, however, the real title was Rerum vulgarium fragmenta,

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that is, fragments of vulgar things, that is, various texts written in the vulgar language.

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In all, we received 72 sheets of parchment, which contain all 366 poems that make up

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the work (one for each day of the year, if we exclude the poem that serves as an introduction

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to the work). Both Petrarch himself and a copyist

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who worked under his direct supervision wrote on these sheets of parchment. These sheets were bound, that is, put together,

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after the author's death, and are now found in the Vatican Apostolic Library,

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with the Latin Vatican code name 3195: there is almost no scholar of Italian literature who does not

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know this number. The fact that we have an entire work by Petrarch written by

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Petrarch himself is extraordinary: just think that we do not have a single word of Dante written

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first hand, nor, in reality, written under his direct supervision (in these cases,

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in jargon technical, we speak of an idiographic text). But there is an even more extraordinary fact:

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the papers containing the drafts of the work, and other drafts still, have even reached us (the

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manuscript, in this case, is called Vaticano Latino 3196). These papers give us the possibility

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of studying how the text was improved, reworked and brought to its final form:

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today this exercise might seem obvious, but at the time it was not, and Petrarca's papers

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played the role of driving force, of engine that gave a boost to these reflections.

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At this point, it is impossible not to ask ourselves: what is the work about?

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The Canzoniere tells of Petrarch's love for Laura, a beautiful woman who represents

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not only the object of an earthly love, but also poetic glory itself. This

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interpretation arises from the fact that Petrarca continually compares Laura's name with a

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series of words that have the same etymology, that is, the same origin, and which refer to laurel:

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this plant, also called laurel, is the same one that it was made of the crown with which - you

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remember - Petrarch was crowned, and it is precisely a symbol that represents poetry. Among other things,

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this is also why in Italy, when you finish university, you graduate from "lauro", and

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a laurel wreath is worn in the ceremony. Our Petrarch, therefore, loves a woman and loves

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poetic glory: you are perhaps wondering what the problem is. The fact is that Petrarch

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would like to love eternal things, and therefore dedicate his spirit to the adoration of God. This generates

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an internal conflict: either one loves earthly things, or one loves otherworldly things, and there

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is no way medium as possible. Yet Petrarch struggles to let go of his love for Laura:

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he himself tells us, thinking about his past self, that he is now a different man, but only "in part" (and

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he uses exactly these two words, "in part"). This internal struggle lasts an entire life,

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and condemns Petrarch to eternal restlessness: he cannot enjoy love and poetic glory,

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because he feels guilty; and, at the same time, he cannot enjoy the love for God, because the love for Laura

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never dies completely, no matter how much the work constantly leads us towards the adoration of God.

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We see, or rather we read with our eyes : below you will listen to the poem (or more precisely

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the sonnet) which, in fourteen verses, serves as an introduction to the entire work.

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You who listen in scattered rhymes to the sound of those sighs with which I nourished my heart

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in my first youthful error when I was partly a different man from what I am,

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of the various style in which I cry and I reason between vain hopes and vain pain,

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where there is someone who intends love by test, I hope to find pity, as well as forgiveness.

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But I see well now how

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I was a complete fable to the people for a long time, so that I am often ashamed of myself;

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and shame is the fruit of my raving,

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and repentance, and clearly knowing that what pleases the world is a brief dream.

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Petrarch, with this text, addresses those who are reading the text, and in particular those who,

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like him and many of us, have suffered for love: his hope is to be understood and

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forgiven for having made the mistake of love Laura. His youthful mistake led him to

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be mocked, to repent, and above all to understand that earthly things are only a

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brief dream, in the sense that they are not eternal like divine things. Yet Petrarch's change

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is not complete: it occurred, as we have already seen, only "in part".

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There is not the time necessary to analyze the text in detail or read others,

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but I would like to point out, in the meantime, that fundamentally Petrarch's Italian is also our Italian,

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for the most part, and this is because Petrarch himself contributed indirectly to create literary Italian

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, and because the Florentine vernacular, which was the language of Petrarca,

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over the centuries, as you know, would have been chosen as the reference language for Italians.

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Let's just think about the first verse: You who listen to the sound in scattered rhymes. Phonetically, all

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words remained identical. It would be really difficult to say the same about a verse written

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in English, in French, in German, in Greek or in Chinese in the 14th century, it is astonishing.

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As for the meaning, scattered rhymes could rather be translated as loose poems, that is, not

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collected in a well-ordered and concluded work. In general, however, the poem is quite easy,

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all things considered, to understand for an Italian in 2024, obviously provided

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that some indication is provided. The message is that Petrarch's Italian,

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for a series of reasons, is very similar to our Italian, and this applies to a

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good portion of literary Italian. This is excellent news for those who already know and study

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Italian, because it means that those who know the contemporary language can also,

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with a little effort and patience, access eight hundred years of literature. It's not bad, right?

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Before closing the video, I would like to try to explain more explicitly why Petrarca

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is such an important author and why I dedicated such a long video to him.

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First of all, he left us a huge cultural and

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literary legacy, both with his Latin and vernacular works, both with the works he discovered,

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and with the works he studied and commented on. But if this is also a merit of several other

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authors, with Petrarch there is something else. With the Canzoniere the poetic forms of Italian were basically definitively established

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: they range from the canzone, which is the noblest form,

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used for the highest and most political topics, to the sestinas, ballads and madrigals,

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up to the sonnet, that is, the form used to write the poem we read just now, composed of

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fourteen verses. In the Canzoniere, the sonnet is the quantitatively most represented form,

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and in general, starting from Petrarch, it will often be used to deal with

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slightly lighter topics than those of the song, and in particular obviously love.

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It is, by the way, an entirely Italian form, given that it was born in Italy in the early

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thirteenth century, soon spread throughout the peninsula and, thanks to Petrarch, even went beyond the

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borders of Italy. In fact, in the sixteenth century, Henry Howard, an English poet, translated several

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texts by Petrarch. Thomas Wyatt, himself a poet, tends to use translation

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and imitation less, and rather writes his own sonnets, always based on the form established

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by Petrarch. Starting from these inputs, and then from the contributions of other followers of Petrarch,

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the sonnet spread more and more. The number of these followers rose to the point where

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we can speak of a real artistic phenomenon, called Petrarchism: in the 16th century

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we find signs of it, not only in England, but also in France and Spain, and beyond. Shakespeare

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probably read only part of Petrarch's works, also because he did not know

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Italian very well; however, he could not fail to know the Petrarchists of his era, and in fact Shakespeare's sonnets

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are not without this influence. If we had not had Petrarch, we would not

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even have had the Shakespeare we know, nor would we have had several other works as we have

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known them, both in Italy and abroad. As for the Italian language, Petrarchism

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arrived at the right time, because at the beginning of the sixteenth century the debate on the

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language was quite intense: the Peninsula was divided into many political entities,

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there was no nation, as you know, and yet people were looking for a language to Italy,

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to write and communicate among the various reasons. It is at this point that Pietro Bembo,

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an Italian intellectual who we will talk about in more detail in a future video, enters the scene . Bembo,

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an Italian intellectual and man of letters, understands that choosing an Italian vernacular as the reference language

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also means making one language prevail over all the others, and he also understands that

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this imposition can only occur successfully if it is based on prestige. For this reason, as a model

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for prose (i.e. non-poetic writing) he chooses the famous Decameron by Boccaccio,

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the author I mentioned before, who Petrarch met in Florence in 1350, we will talk about it;

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and as a model of poetic language, instead, it indicates the Canzoniere of our Petrarch. Perhaps Bembo

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indicates the only winning solution, the only one possible in that precise cultural,

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historical and geographical context. In the fifteenth century there had been much more linguistic heterogeneity,

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but the sixteenth century, the first true century of printing, required greater uniformity;

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and Bembo gives the right proposals at the right time. In 1525 he composed the Prose della volgar lingua,

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in which the models just mentioned are given, thus constituting a sort of grammar of

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fourteenth-century Tuscan literature, that is, two centuries ahead of his time. Furthermore,

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Bembo himself composes, on this basis, several texts, which will then be taken as examples.

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The proposal works, it works incredibly well: Petrarca remains unquestionably the

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greatest poetic model for over five hundred - five hundred! – years,

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so much so that we can still clearly see its influence in nineteenth-century poems.

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Let's take The Saturday of the Village, a poem written by Giacomo Leopardi in 1829. At a certain point,

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we find "the little old lady up the stairs"; in the Canzoniere, however,

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we find «risata era a filar la rossarella»: not only is the language very similar, but also the

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poetic images that Leopardi selects are often of Petrarchan inspiration. And again:

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we read «already all the dark air» in the Saturday of the village, while in the Canzoniere we find

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«et l'aere nostra et la mia mente bruna». In short, we have discovered an

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important Italian author: important from every point of view (cultural, literary, linguistic), even

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European level. The examples could not be counted: just think of how many intellectuals of

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eighteenth-century Vienna knew Italian thanks to the Canzoniere... And then, thanks to his role as a great

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model of poetic language, Petrarch has forever influenced the fate of Italian, even if the

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story is much longer. In the next video of this series we will talk about the third crown, namely

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Giovanni Boccaccio. In the meantime, if you haven't seen it yet, I'll leave you my video on Dante here.