Petrarch in German Literature

Literary/ Cultural Context Essay

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Next to Dante, Francesco Petrarca (1404-74) is the most famous Italian poet, sometimes referred to as the first modern man, the first great humanist, and a much-imitated poet of love. On the cusp of the Renaissance he was not only a major force in the development of the European Republic of Letters based on his Latin treatises on moral philosophy, but an equally paradigmatic figure in writing vernacular poetry collected in his

Trionfi

(1352-74) and

Canzoniere

(1336-74). Petrarch’s influence started already during his lifetime and, reinforced by his disciples and imitators, the so-called Petrarchists, continued to exert a powerful legacy in European letters and music well into the nineteenth century. This is particularly true of Petrarch’s reception in Germany.

The Latin Petrarch in

3171 words

Citation: Hoffmeister, Gerhart. "Petrarch in German Literature". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 12 April 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=7221, accessed 28 March 2024.]

7221 Petrarch in German Literature 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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