Petrarch
Overview
Francesco Petrarca (July 20, 1304 – July 19, 1374), known in English
as Petrarch, was an Italian
scholar, poet
and one of the earliest humanists
. Petrarch is often called the "Father of Humanism
". In the 16th century, Pietro Bembo
created the model for the modern Italian language
based on Petrarch's works, as well as those of Giovanni Boccaccio
and, especially, Dante Alighieri
. This would be later endorsed by the Accademia della Crusca
. Petrarch's sonnets were admired and imitated throughout Europe during the Renaissance and became a model for lyrical poetry.
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
as Petrarch, was an Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
scholar, poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
and one of the earliest humanists
Renaissance humanism
Renaissance humanism was an activity of cultural and educational reform engaged by scholars, writers, and civic leaders who are today known as Renaissance humanists. It developed during the fourteenth and the beginning of the fifteenth centuries, and was a response to the challenge of Mediæval...
. Petrarch is often called the "Father of Humanism
Renaissance humanism
Renaissance humanism was an activity of cultural and educational reform engaged by scholars, writers, and civic leaders who are today known as Renaissance humanists. It developed during the fourteenth and the beginning of the fifteenth centuries, and was a response to the challenge of Mediæval...
". In the 16th century, Pietro Bembo
Pietro Bembo
Pietro Bembo was an Italian scholar, poet, literary theorist, and cardinal. He was an influential figure in the development of the Italian language, specifically Tuscan, as a literary medium, and his writings assisted in the 16th-century revival of interest in the works of Petrarch...
created the model for the modern Italian language
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
based on Petrarch's works, as well as those of Giovanni Boccaccio
Giovanni Boccaccio
Giovanni Boccaccio was an Italian author and poet, a friend, student, and correspondent of Petrarch, an important Renaissance humanist and the author of a number of notable works including the Decameron, On Famous Women, and his poetry in the Italian vernacular...
and, especially, Dante Alighieri
Dante Alighieri
Durante degli Alighieri, mononymously referred to as Dante , was an Italian poet, prose writer, literary theorist, moral philosopher, and political thinker. He is best known for the monumental epic poem La commedia, later named La divina commedia ...
. This would be later endorsed by the Accademia della Crusca
Accademia della Crusca
The Accademia della Crusca is an Italian society for scholars and Italian linguists and philologists established in Florence. After the Accademia Cosentina, it is the oldest Italian academy still in existence...
. Petrarch's sonnets were admired and imitated throughout Europe during the Renaissance and became a model for lyrical poetry.
Quotations
Rarely do great beauty and great virtue dwell together.
De Remedies, Book II
Books have led some to learning and others to madness, when they swallow more than they can digest.
quoted in "Lifetime speaker's encyclopedia" - Page 75 by Jacob Morton Braude - Quotations - 1962
It is better to will the good than to know the truth.
quoted in "The Renaissance: Essays in Interpretation" - Page 107 by André Chastel - History - 1982
Sameness is the mother of disgust, variety the cure.
quoted in "The Little Giant Encyclopedia of Inspirational Quotes" - Page 446 by Wendy Toliver - Self-Help - 2005
Who overrefines his argument brings himself to grief.
Canzone 11
A good death does honor to a whole life.
Canzone 16
To be able to say how much you love is to love but little.
Canzone 37