Niccolò Machiavelli’s comedy
La Mandragola(
The Mandrake) was most likely first performed in Florence during the carnival season of 1518, and composed sometime between 1512 and its debut. It was originally entitled
Comedia di Callimaco & di Lucretia, although the author occasionally referred to the work as
Comedia di Messer Nicia. While there is no definitive way to date the work precisely, the only extant manuscript of the play is from 1519. Pasquale Stoppelli convincingly argues that
La Mandragolawas certainly written after Machiavelli completed his vernacularization of Terence’s
Andria. The comedy quickly gained popularity in other milieus, including the city of Venice during the Lenten carnival seasons of 1522 and 1526, and the papal court of Pope Leo X (Giovanni di Lorenzo…
1218 words
Citation: Picicci, Chris. "La Mandragola". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 29 August 2016 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=4144, accessed 10 November 2024.]