Sperone Speroni

Sperone Speroni degli Alvarotti (1500-1588) was an Italian Renaissance humanist, scholar, and dramatist. He was one of the central members of Padua's literary academy, Accademia degli Infiammati, and wrote on both moral and literary matters, including rhetoric (Dialogo della retorica, 1542), the status of women (Dialogo delle dignità delle donne, 1542) and the nature of love (Dialogo d'amore, written in 1537 and published in 1542). His unfinished verse tragedy Canace, heavily modeled on Senecan tragedy, was only performed once, but was widely diffused and reaction to Speroni's play (together with Giovanni Battista Giraldi's play Orbecche) lead to literary debates on tragedy and theatrical morals through to the next century (the play tells the story of Aeolus the father of the winds who exacts vengeance on his children for having commited incest). His Dialogo delle lingue promoted the use of vernacular languages (rather than Latin) and was an important source for Joachim du Bellay's Défense et illustration de la langue française.

Related Topics:
1500 - 1588 - Italian - Renaissance - Humanist - Padua - Rhetoric - Tragedy - Canace - Seneca - Giovanni Battista Giraldi - Aeolus - Incest - Vernacular - Latin - Joachim du Bellay

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~