This essay is twofold： the first part focuses on the interpretation of the concept of Hell in Dante＇s Inferno and Italian culture as depicted in Last Judgment scenes such as Giotto＇s in the Arena Chapel of Padua; S...This essay is twofold： the first part focuses on the interpretation of the concept of Hell in Dante＇s Inferno and Italian culture as depicted in Last Judgment scenes such as Giotto＇s in the Arena Chapel of Padua; Signorelli＇s in the Orvieto Cathedral; and Michelangelo＇s in the Sistine Chapel in Rome. The second part deals with the drawing illustrations for the text of Dante＇s Divine Comedy composed by the Florentine painters Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Here the emphasis is on Dante＇s Inferno, which comments upon Neoplatonic personalities, Florentine politics, and current popular art. Comparisons with some of Botticelli＇s, Stradano＇s, and Zuccaro＇s drawing illustrations indicate the assimilation of classical artistic concepts such as Horace＇s ut pictura poesis [as is painting so is poetry] as well as Plato＇sfurorpoeticus [poetical inspiration] promoted in the writings of Marsilio Ficino, a Renaissance Neoplatonic philosopher.展开更多
This paper, that has been introduced at the annual meeting of the Renaissance Society of America （Washington, March 22, 2012）, is a little part of a wider research about migration and movements of people between Wes...This paper, that has been introduced at the annual meeting of the Renaissance Society of America （Washington, March 22, 2012）, is a little part of a wider research about migration and movements of people between Western and Eastern Europe （and vice versa） that, started one year ago, is still in progress. Despite a common thought that had considered, still in 15th century, Hungarians as unculturished and violent people, the town of Ferrara, ruled by the Estes, had welcomed many of them during the 15-16th centuries. They were, above all, and as the sources testify, literati and students. This paper tries to show and analyze the cultural reasons and the background that have determined Hungarians＇ presence in Ferrara during the Renaissance, with the consciousness that if many sources have been studied, many others must be展开更多
It is in the spirit of a ＂new family unit＂ that Dracula attempts vampire procreation in Bram Stoker＇s Dracula （2000） The themes of proper lineage and procreation juxtaposed with archaic late Victorian ideas invit...It is in the spirit of a ＂new family unit＂ that Dracula attempts vampire procreation in Bram Stoker＇s Dracula （2000） The themes of proper lineage and procreation juxtaposed with archaic late Victorian ideas invite exploration in this timeless novel. The novel is considered Gothic, yet it meets the cultural milieu of the fin de sikcle contemporary London of the 1890s. As the novel is considered fairly contemporary for its time, it is important to note that given new scientific theories such as eugenics, it is possible that Stoker was attempting to show a new kind of family unit---one that is not begot of the actual sex-act, but rather one that is propagated through the mingling of blood as a replacement for semen. There is much evidence in the novel to suggest that he not only wants to continue his family, but also that he is a true Renaissance ＂man＂ in his knowledge of other cultures, his pleasure and decadence in the finer material possessions, and his consumption of private property to continue his lineage in comfort and safety. It is clear in the novel that a brief analysis of the concepts of progeny and eugenics that the character of Dracula can be read as a ＂regular guy＂ simply trying to continue his lineage in an unforgiving and judgmental world. Dracula is violent in his preservation of his lineage, but he only does so to ensure he will not have to be a night-dweller on his own for eternity. He is a kind of demonic cupid with piercing fangs instead of angelic arrows He has to kill the human soul to obtain this obsessive dream of hearth and home展开更多
Quentin Skinner＇s work since his turn to rhetoric has not been extensively discussed. My thesis is that with this turn Skinner has invented another novelty in the study of political thought, by including the analysis...Quentin Skinner＇s work since his turn to rhetoric has not been extensively discussed. My thesis is that with this turn Skinner has invented another novelty in the study of political thought, by including the analysis of the rhetoric of debating pro et contra among political agents as sources of political thought. The exemplary institution for such debates is the Westminster Parliament, and Skinner extends the analysis of the rhetorical culture of English Renaissance to studies on parliamentary debates. Here I am first comparing Skinner＇s The Foundations of Modern Political Thought and Reason and Rhetoric in the Philosophy of Hobbes in their relationship to rhetoric. Subsequently I discuss Skinner＇s comments on English parliamentary debates, including his recommendation to read Hobbes＇s Leviathan ＂as a speech in Parliament.＂ Reason and Rhetoric has inspired valuable studies on English Renaissance political rhetoric, shortly discussed here. For the understanding of the distinct parliamentary variety of deliberative rhetoric, I refer to the formation of a specific parliamentary procedure and to procedural tracts from sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Westminster, which among others create a parliamentary vocabulary and rules for conducting and regulating parliamentary debates. The parliamentary procedure institutionalizes the principle of in utramque partem disputare, central in Skinner＇s rhetorical studies. By this manner we can re-activate the link between political thought and parliamentary studies as well as explicate a dissensual alternative to Jiirgen Habermas＇s views on the political thought studies and parliamentary debates.展开更多
The paper explores an ambiguous intersection between history and fiction in Scarlet Venice （Hi no Venezia, in original） （1988） by Japanese novelist and historiographer, Shiono Nanami （1937-）. As a prominent tran...The paper explores an ambiguous intersection between history and fiction in Scarlet Venice （Hi no Venezia, in original） （1988） by Japanese novelist and historiographer, Shiono Nanami （1937-）. As a prominent transnational writer who has worked on the Italian Renaissance and the Roman antiquity for about 40 years, Shiono fictionalizes the political culture of 16th century Venice in the context of the Eastern Mediterranean history. Based on her The Tales of the Sea Capital （1981）, historiography par excellence, the novel portrays the political maneuver of the Republic of Venice from viewpoints of diplomacy. With this thematic approach to history, the novel centers on the life and death of Alvise Gritti （1480-1534）, an illegitimate son of famed Venetian Doge, Andrea Gritti. In the metaphorical/metafictional structure of historical crime fiction, the novel unveils the austerity of Venetian polity, while contrasting it with the liberalism fostered in Sultan Suleiman＇s Ottoman court. In conclusion, the author interprets that Alvise Gritti is a victim of the political intricacy with which Venice was wrestling, implying that the republic is the metaphorical murderer. Whereas Alvise＇s death commemorates a drastic step taken by Venice for political negotiation, Shiono＇s recent writings suggest that Japan should model the rigid pragmatism in Venetian politics, along with its effective use of intelligence in diplomacy展开更多
The aim of this paper is to present the less known phenomenon of late-Gothic Mantuan architecture in the second half of the 15th century. Indeed Mantua is famous for its Renaissance monuments. However, some of the Gon...The aim of this paper is to present the less known phenomenon of late-Gothic Mantuan architecture in the second half of the 15th century. Indeed Mantua is famous for its Renaissance monuments. However, some of the Gonzaga palaces show Gothic details, such as towers or battlements. In addition, some patricians, merchants, and priests continued to follow the Gothic tradition until the final decade of the ＂Quattrocento＂. This paper will present a first list of these interesting architectures--both public and private, religious and profane--which, in some cases and despite the Gothic language, the archival research has demonstrated a late 15th century executions.展开更多
This paper proposes the architectural communication as a socio-spatial identification, and a channel for the politico-patrimonial dialogue in a determined territory which is in this case the south Moroccan city of Aga...This paper proposes the architectural communication as a socio-spatial identification, and a channel for the politico-patrimonial dialogue in a determined territory which is in this case the south Moroccan city of Agadir. By analyzing Agadir＇s urbanistic and architectural content thorough ages, we find ourselves involved in an enthralling and passionate debate concerning two important aspects. The first is the historical temporality of the city＇s architectural and urbanistic changes. In other words, it is the different architectural transformation related to the political transmutations that Agadir has witnessed since the Portugal settlement until the after earthquake of 1960. While the second is about the perception toward the architectural oeuvre deeply settled in the territory and the memory of the city＇s designers. This aspect is linked to the society＇s perception toward the architectural-urban transformations in their territory. In our paper, we are going to focus on two major architectural and urbanistic ages in the history of Agadir. The first period we are going to approach is the architectural and urbanistic features of Agadir during French settlement. The second period is Agadir＇s architectural renaissance after 1960s earthquakes. Since the core of our study is the architectural acts, it is definitely a matter of interpretation related to the philosophical, mental and ideological representation of the city＇s architecture and urbanism either by those who artistically invented Agadir during colonialism or those who reinvented Agadir after 1960s earthquakes. Do urbanism and architecture represent for Agadir, a power, a doctrine or a savoir-faire？ Can we affirm that Agadir＇s architecture is truly reflecting the image of its society？ Is this society in itself immersed sufficiently in its architecture？ Several hypotheses are possible in this research. Nevertheless, the fact that in this paper we use communication as a vehicle to establish a dialogue between arts, politics and socio-ideologic and territorial governance makes us recognize the different bridging relationships between the architectural action, the political and urbanistic content represented in the architectural expression. It also helps us to discover and analyze the ideologies that lead the architects during their conception. Finally, is this architecture which normally must represent the society in tempo-spatial territory admitted by the local citizens？ All these are lines of research we are going to shed light on in this paper.展开更多
Italian military real-estate is highly varied as regards its location, intended uses, its typological, stylistic, and constructive features and its state of conservation. What historical and documental value can we at...Italian military real-estate is highly varied as regards its location, intended uses, its typological, stylistic, and constructive features and its state of conservation. What historical and documental value can we attribute to the typological and technical aspects of military buildings？ What problems and strategies have to be studied before such buildings can be repurposed for inclusion into a circuit of social and civil uses？ Some attempts were made to answer these questions by analysing the military real estate of Palmanova, the fortress city founded by the Serenissima Republic of Venice in 1593, a city designed by engineers, military analysts, and expert military architects all answerable to the Fortifications Office of Venice. There are a number of barracks situated inside the city＇s fortified walls, within a somewhat confined area： Montezemolo, Isonzo, Ederle, Filzi, Montesanto and others in outlying villages. Barracks built in different periods （some during the Renaissance, others in the eighteenth century and some even after the Second World War） have been gradually phased out of service. Their restoration and functional leverage, in the early years of this century, were discussed in terms of an economic and cultural strategy that would not upset the city. New regeneration strategies are called for if these abandoned military structures are not to undergo further deterioration. These strategies should be based upon a knowledge of these structures＇ features--their layout, architecture, technologies--and should also embrace local policies, but first and foremost they require real, contextualized and economically sustainable projects.展开更多
Giovanni Antonio Bazzi （1477-1549）, also known as I1 Sodoma, was a Milanese painter who developed his mature style in Siena during the early Cinquecento. Between 1505 and 1510, under the tutelage of the Chigi and Pe...Giovanni Antonio Bazzi （1477-1549）, also known as I1 Sodoma, was a Milanese painter who developed his mature style in Siena during the early Cinquecento. Between 1505 and 1510, under the tutelage of the Chigi and Petrucci families, Bazzi depicted mythological paintings focusing on the personifications of love both terrestrial and celestial. This paper looks at two such works. In one, there hangs on a sycamore tree a classical cartello with the Latin inscription Celestes, meaning celestial or heavenly, providing the title for the painting Amore Celeste （Celestial Love, Figure 3）. A woman, as the personification of love, stands in front of two altars. She ignites one urn with fire and at the same time pours water over another burning fire. In the second work, a tondo with the theme of Terrestrial Love and Celestial Love, Bazzi considered the mischievousness of Venus＇ children Eros and Anteros （Figure 12）. These paintings are mythological and poetical delights with complex symbolism, here analyzed in terms of their iconography in relation to classical influences and Renaissance Neoplatonic love or furor divinus. The paradoxical quest of Renaissance Neoplatonic love was to fuse pagan love with Christian love. For the humanists of the time （Bembo, Colonna, Poliziano, Ficino and Pico） this moral dilemma was a philosophical puzzle, but for artists （Botticelli, Nicoletto da Modena, Pinturicchio and Bazzi） the theme was a pictorial challenge.展开更多
Kenneth Burke＇s rhetoric on language as a symbolic action offers an enlightening perspective for revealing the connection between the motivations and actions of the characters in Thomas Kyd＇s The Spanish Tragedy. Th...Kenneth Burke＇s rhetoric on language as a symbolic action offers an enlightening perspective for revealing the connection between the motivations and actions of the characters in Thomas Kyd＇s The Spanish Tragedy. This work is a Renaissance drama that features hues of rhetorical language. Linguistic obfuscation, scapegoat mechanism, and the malfunction and dysfunction of language in victimization and revenge are thrown into relief through Burke＇s elaborate system of the symbolism of language. Analyzing the discursive performances of the main characters, readers could get clues of their motives that drive their actions, which are both a representation and an illustration of how language as a symbolic action works in literature展开更多
文摘This essay is twofold： the first part focuses on the interpretation of the concept of Hell in Dante＇s Inferno and Italian culture as depicted in Last Judgment scenes such as Giotto＇s in the Arena Chapel of Padua; Signorelli＇s in the Orvieto Cathedral; and Michelangelo＇s in the Sistine Chapel in Rome. The second part deals with the drawing illustrations for the text of Dante＇s Divine Comedy composed by the Florentine painters Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Here the emphasis is on Dante＇s Inferno, which comments upon Neoplatonic personalities, Florentine politics, and current popular art. Comparisons with some of Botticelli＇s, Stradano＇s, and Zuccaro＇s drawing illustrations indicate the assimilation of classical artistic concepts such as Horace＇s ut pictura poesis [as is painting so is poetry] as well as Plato＇sfurorpoeticus [poetical inspiration] promoted in the writings of Marsilio Ficino, a Renaissance Neoplatonic philosopher.
文摘This paper, that has been introduced at the annual meeting of the Renaissance Society of America （Washington, March 22, 2012）, is a little part of a wider research about migration and movements of people between Western and Eastern Europe （and vice versa） that, started one year ago, is still in progress. Despite a common thought that had considered, still in 15th century, Hungarians as unculturished and violent people, the town of Ferrara, ruled by the Estes, had welcomed many of them during the 15-16th centuries. They were, above all, and as the sources testify, literati and students. This paper tries to show and analyze the cultural reasons and the background that have determined Hungarians＇ presence in Ferrara during the Renaissance, with the consciousness that if many sources have been studied, many others must be
文摘It is in the spirit of a ＂new family unit＂ that Dracula attempts vampire procreation in Bram Stoker＇s Dracula （2000） The themes of proper lineage and procreation juxtaposed with archaic late Victorian ideas invite exploration in this timeless novel. The novel is considered Gothic, yet it meets the cultural milieu of the fin de sikcle contemporary London of the 1890s. As the novel is considered fairly contemporary for its time, it is important to note that given new scientific theories such as eugenics, it is possible that Stoker was attempting to show a new kind of family unit---one that is not begot of the actual sex-act, but rather one that is propagated through the mingling of blood as a replacement for semen. There is much evidence in the novel to suggest that he not only wants to continue his family, but also that he is a true Renaissance ＂man＂ in his knowledge of other cultures, his pleasure and decadence in the finer material possessions, and his consumption of private property to continue his lineage in comfort and safety. It is clear in the novel that a brief analysis of the concepts of progeny and eugenics that the character of Dracula can be read as a ＂regular guy＂ simply trying to continue his lineage in an unforgiving and judgmental world. Dracula is violent in his preservation of his lineage, but he only does so to ensure he will not have to be a night-dweller on his own for eternity. He is a kind of demonic cupid with piercing fangs instead of angelic arrows He has to kill the human soul to obtain this obsessive dream of hearth and home
文摘Quentin Skinner＇s work since his turn to rhetoric has not been extensively discussed. My thesis is that with this turn Skinner has invented another novelty in the study of political thought, by including the analysis of the rhetoric of debating pro et contra among political agents as sources of political thought. The exemplary institution for such debates is the Westminster Parliament, and Skinner extends the analysis of the rhetorical culture of English Renaissance to studies on parliamentary debates. Here I am first comparing Skinner＇s The Foundations of Modern Political Thought and Reason and Rhetoric in the Philosophy of Hobbes in their relationship to rhetoric. Subsequently I discuss Skinner＇s comments on English parliamentary debates, including his recommendation to read Hobbes＇s Leviathan ＂as a speech in Parliament.＂ Reason and Rhetoric has inspired valuable studies on English Renaissance political rhetoric, shortly discussed here. For the understanding of the distinct parliamentary variety of deliberative rhetoric, I refer to the formation of a specific parliamentary procedure and to procedural tracts from sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Westminster, which among others create a parliamentary vocabulary and rules for conducting and regulating parliamentary debates. The parliamentary procedure institutionalizes the principle of in utramque partem disputare, central in Skinner＇s rhetorical studies. By this manner we can re-activate the link between political thought and parliamentary studies as well as explicate a dissensual alternative to Jiirgen Habermas＇s views on the political thought studies and parliamentary debates.
文摘The paper explores an ambiguous intersection between history and fiction in Scarlet Venice （Hi no Venezia, in original） （1988） by Japanese novelist and historiographer, Shiono Nanami （1937-）. As a prominent transnational writer who has worked on the Italian Renaissance and the Roman antiquity for about 40 years, Shiono fictionalizes the political culture of 16th century Venice in the context of the Eastern Mediterranean history. Based on her The Tales of the Sea Capital （1981）, historiography par excellence, the novel portrays the political maneuver of the Republic of Venice from viewpoints of diplomacy. With this thematic approach to history, the novel centers on the life and death of Alvise Gritti （1480-1534）, an illegitimate son of famed Venetian Doge, Andrea Gritti. In the metaphorical/metafictional structure of historical crime fiction, the novel unveils the austerity of Venetian polity, while contrasting it with the liberalism fostered in Sultan Suleiman＇s Ottoman court. In conclusion, the author interprets that Alvise Gritti is a victim of the political intricacy with which Venice was wrestling, implying that the republic is the metaphorical murderer. Whereas Alvise＇s death commemorates a drastic step taken by Venice for political negotiation, Shiono＇s recent writings suggest that Japan should model the rigid pragmatism in Venetian politics, along with its effective use of intelligence in diplomacy
文摘The aim of this paper is to present the less known phenomenon of late-Gothic Mantuan architecture in the second half of the 15th century. Indeed Mantua is famous for its Renaissance monuments. However, some of the Gonzaga palaces show Gothic details, such as towers or battlements. In addition, some patricians, merchants, and priests continued to follow the Gothic tradition until the final decade of the ＂Quattrocento＂. This paper will present a first list of these interesting architectures--both public and private, religious and profane--which, in some cases and despite the Gothic language, the archival research has demonstrated a late 15th century executions.
文摘This paper proposes the architectural communication as a socio-spatial identification, and a channel for the politico-patrimonial dialogue in a determined territory which is in this case the south Moroccan city of Agadir. By analyzing Agadir＇s urbanistic and architectural content thorough ages, we find ourselves involved in an enthralling and passionate debate concerning two important aspects. The first is the historical temporality of the city＇s architectural and urbanistic changes. In other words, it is the different architectural transformation related to the political transmutations that Agadir has witnessed since the Portugal settlement until the after earthquake of 1960. While the second is about the perception toward the architectural oeuvre deeply settled in the territory and the memory of the city＇s designers. This aspect is linked to the society＇s perception toward the architectural-urban transformations in their territory. In our paper, we are going to focus on two major architectural and urbanistic ages in the history of Agadir. The first period we are going to approach is the architectural and urbanistic features of Agadir during French settlement. The second period is Agadir＇s architectural renaissance after 1960s earthquakes. Since the core of our study is the architectural acts, it is definitely a matter of interpretation related to the philosophical, mental and ideological representation of the city＇s architecture and urbanism either by those who artistically invented Agadir during colonialism or those who reinvented Agadir after 1960s earthquakes. Do urbanism and architecture represent for Agadir, a power, a doctrine or a savoir-faire？ Can we affirm that Agadir＇s architecture is truly reflecting the image of its society？ Is this society in itself immersed sufficiently in its architecture？ Several hypotheses are possible in this research. Nevertheless, the fact that in this paper we use communication as a vehicle to establish a dialogue between arts, politics and socio-ideologic and territorial governance makes us recognize the different bridging relationships between the architectural action, the political and urbanistic content represented in the architectural expression. It also helps us to discover and analyze the ideologies that lead the architects during their conception. Finally, is this architecture which normally must represent the society in tempo-spatial territory admitted by the local citizens？ All these are lines of research we are going to shed light on in this paper.
文摘Italian military real-estate is highly varied as regards its location, intended uses, its typological, stylistic, and constructive features and its state of conservation. What historical and documental value can we attribute to the typological and technical aspects of military buildings？ What problems and strategies have to be studied before such buildings can be repurposed for inclusion into a circuit of social and civil uses？ Some attempts were made to answer these questions by analysing the military real estate of Palmanova, the fortress city founded by the Serenissima Republic of Venice in 1593, a city designed by engineers, military analysts, and expert military architects all answerable to the Fortifications Office of Venice. There are a number of barracks situated inside the city＇s fortified walls, within a somewhat confined area： Montezemolo, Isonzo, Ederle, Filzi, Montesanto and others in outlying villages. Barracks built in different periods （some during the Renaissance, others in the eighteenth century and some even after the Second World War） have been gradually phased out of service. Their restoration and functional leverage, in the early years of this century, were discussed in terms of an economic and cultural strategy that would not upset the city. New regeneration strategies are called for if these abandoned military structures are not to undergo further deterioration. These strategies should be based upon a knowledge of these structures＇ features--their layout, architecture, technologies--and should also embrace local policies, but first and foremost they require real, contextualized and economically sustainable projects.
文摘Giovanni Antonio Bazzi （1477-1549）, also known as I1 Sodoma, was a Milanese painter who developed his mature style in Siena during the early Cinquecento. Between 1505 and 1510, under the tutelage of the Chigi and Petrucci families, Bazzi depicted mythological paintings focusing on the personifications of love both terrestrial and celestial. This paper looks at two such works. In one, there hangs on a sycamore tree a classical cartello with the Latin inscription Celestes, meaning celestial or heavenly, providing the title for the painting Amore Celeste （Celestial Love, Figure 3）. A woman, as the personification of love, stands in front of two altars. She ignites one urn with fire and at the same time pours water over another burning fire. In the second work, a tondo with the theme of Terrestrial Love and Celestial Love, Bazzi considered the mischievousness of Venus＇ children Eros and Anteros （Figure 12）. These paintings are mythological and poetical delights with complex symbolism, here analyzed in terms of their iconography in relation to classical influences and Renaissance Neoplatonic love or furor divinus. The paradoxical quest of Renaissance Neoplatonic love was to fuse pagan love with Christian love. For the humanists of the time （Bembo, Colonna, Poliziano, Ficino and Pico） this moral dilemma was a philosophical puzzle, but for artists （Botticelli, Nicoletto da Modena, Pinturicchio and Bazzi） the theme was a pictorial challenge.
文摘Kenneth Burke＇s rhetoric on language as a symbolic action offers an enlightening perspective for revealing the connection between the motivations and actions of the characters in Thomas Kyd＇s The Spanish Tragedy. This work is a Renaissance drama that features hues of rhetorical language. Linguistic obfuscation, scapegoat mechanism, and the malfunction and dysfunction of language in victimization and revenge are thrown into relief through Burke＇s elaborate system of the symbolism of language. Analyzing the discursive performances of the main characters, readers could get clues of their motives that drive their actions, which are both a representation and an illustration of how language as a symbolic action works in literature
