Chiara Matraini (1515-1604) was a member of the great flowering of poetic imitators and innovators in the Italian literary heritage begun by Petrarch, cultivated later by the lyric poet Pietro Bembo, and supplanted by the epic poet Torquato Tasso. Though without formal training, Matraini excelled in a number of literary genres popular at the time - poetry, religious meditation, discourse, and dialogue. In her midlife, she published a collection of erotic love poetry, but later in life her work shifted toward a search for spiritual salvation. Near the end of her life, she published a new poetry retrospective. Previously available in only a handful of rare book collections, her writings are now adeptly translated here for an English-speaking audience and situated historically in an introduction by noted Matraini expert Giovanna Rabitti. "Selected Poetry and Prose" allows the poet to finally take her place as one of the seminal authors of "The Renaissance", next to her contemporaries Vittoria Colonna and Laura Battiferra, also published in the "Other Voice" series.

About the Author
Elaine Maclachlan was a teacher of Italian at Harvard University, Smith College, and Tufts University. She is now retired from teaching.

Reviews
"The Other Voice in Early Modern Europe series allows little-known women's voices to be heard, with translations of sixteenth- to eighteenth-century European texts. The approach is feminist, and each volume is prefaced with a historical account of the systematic oppression and frustration of women." - Maya Slater, Times Literary Supplement"



Book Information
ISBN 9780226510859
Author Chiara Matraini
Format Paperback
Page Count 232
Imprint University of Chicago Press
Publisher The University of Chicago Press
Weight(grams) 454g
Dimensions(mm) 23mm * 17mm * 2mm