Boccaccio’s Corpus

James C. Kriesel

Description

In Boccaccio’s Corpus, James C. Kriesel explores how medieval ideas about the body and gender inspired Boccaccio’s vernacular and Latin writings. Scholars have observed that Boccaccio distinguished himself from Dante and Petrarch by writing about women, erotic acts, and the sexualized body. On account of these facets of his texts, Boccaccio has often been heralded as a protorealist author who invented new literatures by eschewing medieval modes of writing. This study revises modern scholarship by showing that Boccaccio’s texts were informed by contemporary ideas about allegory, gender, and theology. Kriesel proposes that Boccaccio wrote about women to engage with debates concerning the dignity of what was coded as female in the Middle Ages. This encompassed varieties of mundane experiences, somatic spiritual expressions, and vernacular texts. Boccaccio championed the feminine to counter the diverse writers who thought that men, ascetic experiences, and Latin works had more dignity than women and female cultures. Emboldened by literary and religious ideas about the body, Boccaccio asserted that his “feminine” texts could signify as efficaciously as Dante’s Divine Comedy and Petrarch’s classicizing writings. Indeed, he claimed that they could even be more effective in moving an audience because of their affective nature— namely, their capacity to attract, entertain, and stimulate readers. Kriesel argues that Boccaccio drew on medieval traditions to highlight the symbolic utility of erotic literatures and to promote cultures associated with women.

Sujets

• Literary Criticism
• Medieval
• Edad Media
• Literature
• Middle Ages
• Italian
• Poetry
• European

Informations

• Publié par: University of Notre Dame Press
• Date de parution: 15 décembre 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780268104528
• Langue: English

Extrait

BOCCACCIO’S CORPUS
The William and Katherine Devers Series in Dante and Medieval Italian Literature
Zygmunt G. Barański, Theodore J. Cachey, Jr., and Christian Moevs, editors
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V OLUME 15 Boccaccio’s Corpus: Allegory, Ethics, and Vernacularity James C. Kriesel
V OLUME 14 Meditations on the Life of Christ: The Short Italian Text Sarah McNamer
V OLUME 13 Interpreting Dante: Essays on the Traditions of Dante Commentary edited by Paola Nasti and Claudia Rossignoli
V OLUME 12 Freedom Readers: The African American Reception of Dante Alighieri and the Divine Comedy Dennis Looney
V OLUME 11 Dante’s Commedia: Theology as Poetry edited by Vittorio Montemaggi and Matthew Treherne
V OLUME 10 Petrarch and Dante: Anti-Dantism, Metaphysics, Tradition edited by Zygmunt G. Barański and Theodore J. Cachey, Jr.
V OLUME 9 The Ancient Flame: Dante and the Poets Winthrop Wetherbee
V OLUME 8 Accounting for Dante: Urban Readers and Writers in Late Medieval Italy Justin Steinberg
V OLUME 7 Experiencing the Afterlife: Soul and Body in Dante and Medieval Culture Manuele Gragnolati
V OLUME 6 Understanding Dante John A. Scott
V OLUME 5 Dante and the Grammar of the Nursing Body Gary P. Cestaro
V OLUME 4 The Fiore and the Detto d’Amore: A Late 13th-Century Italian Translation of the Roman de la Rose, Attributable to Dante Translated, with introduction and notes, by Santa Casciani and Christopher Kleinhenz
V OLUME 3 The Design in the Wax: The Structure of the Divine Comedy and Its Meaning Marc Cogan
V OLUME 2 The Fiore in Context: Dante, France, Tuscany edited by Zygmunt G. Barański and Patrick Boyde
V OLUME 1 Dante Now: Current Trends in Dante Studies edited by Theodore J. Cachey, Jr.
BOCCACCIO’S CORPUS
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Allegory, Ethics, and Vernacularity
JAMES C. KRIESEL
University of Notre Dame Press
Notre Dame, Indiana
University of Notre Dame Press
Notre Dame, Indiana 46556
undpress.nd.edu
Copyright © 2019 by the University of Notre Dame
All Rights Reserved
Published in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Kriesel, James C., author.
Title: Boccaccio’s corpus : allegory, ethics, and vernacularity / James C. Kriesel.
Description: Notre Dame, IN : University of Notre Dame Press, 2018. | Series: The William and Katherine Devers series in Dante and medieval Italian literature ; volume 15 |
Identifiers: LCCN 2018043820 (print) | LCCN 2018046233 (ebook) | ISBN 9780268104511 (pdf) | ISBN 9780268104528 (epub) | ISBN 9780268104498 (hardback : alk. paper) | ISBN 0268104492 (hardback : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Boccaccio, Giovanni, 1313-1375—Criticism and interpretation.
Classification: LCC PQ4284 (ebook) | LCC PQ4284 .K75 2018 (print) | DDC 858/.109—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018043820
♾ This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper) .
This e-Book was converted from the original source file by a third-party vendor. Readers who notice any formatting, textual, or readability issues are encouraged to contact the publisher at [e-mail]
ABOUT THE WILLIAM AND KATHERINE DEVERS SERIES IN DANTE AND MEDIEVAL ITALIAN LITERATURE
The William and Katherine Devers Program in Dante Studies at the University of Notre Dame supports rare book acquisitions in the university’s John A. Zahm Dante collections, funds an annual visiting professorship in Dante studies, and supports electronic and print publication of scholarly research in the field. In collaboration with the Medieval Institute at the university, the Devers program initiated a series dedicated to the publication of the most significant current scholarship in the field of Dante studies. In 2011 the scope of the series was expanded to encompass thirteenth- and fourteenth-century Italian literature.
In keeping with the spirit that inspired the creation of the Devers program, the series takes Dante and medieval Italian literature as focal points that draw together the many disciplines and lines of inquiry that constitute a cultural tradition without fixed boundaries. Accordingly, the series hopes to illuminate this cultural tradition within contemporary critical debates in the humanities by reflecting both the highest quality of scholarly achievement and the greatest diversity of critical perspectives.
The series publishes works from a wide variety of disciplinary viewpoints and in diverse scholarly genres, including critical studies, commentaries, editions, reception studies, translations, and conference proceedings of exceptional importance. The series enjoys the support of an international advisory board composed of distinguished scholars and is published regularly by the University of Notre Dame Press. The Dolphin and Anchor device that appears on publications of the Devers series was used by the great humanist, grammarian, editor, and typographer Aldus Manutius (1449–1515), in whose 1502 edition of Dante (second issue) and all subsequent editions it appeared. The device illustrates the ancient proverb Festina lente, “Hurry up slowly.”
Zygmunt G. Barański, Theodore J. Cachey, Jr., and Christian Moevs, editors
Albert Russell Ascoli, Berkeley
Teodolinda Barolini, Columbia
Piero Boitani, Rome
Patrick Boyde, Cambridge
Alison Cornish, New York University
Claire Honess, Leeds
Christopher Kleinhenz, Wisconsin
Giuseppe Ledda, Bologna
Simone Marchesi, Princeton
Giuseppe Mazzotta, Yale
Lino Pertile, Harvard
John A. Scott, Western Australia
For Caroline
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations, Editions, Translations
A Note on Translations and Citations
Introduction: Boccaccio’s Corpus: Text and Body
ONE The Allegory of the Corpus: Genealogie deorum gentilium and Scholarly Works
TWO The Poetics of the Corpus: Comedia delle ninfe fiorentine ( Ameto )
THREE The Ethics of the Corpus: Amorosa visione
FOUR The Love of the Corpus: Decameron
FIVE The Hatred of the Corpus: Corbaccio
Epilogue
Notes
Bibliography
Index
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Through the writing of this book, I have forged wonderful friendships. While developing this project, I have also gained insight—about all manner of topics related to Italian culture and beyond—from numerous colleagues. Zygmunt Barański is both a great friend and an exceptional mentor. He commented on sections of this book during every phase of its development, from dissertation to publication. He also unfailingly offered encouragement whenever I needed it. At the University of Notre Dame, I am grateful for the expertise and guidance of Martin Bloomer, Theodore Cachey Jr., and Christian Moevs. They were instrumental in the conceptualization of this project and provided detailed feedback on various drafts of the manuscript. Zyg, Martin, Ted, Christian: thank you. It is a privilege to have collaborated with you.
I am extremely grateful for the assistance of Simon Gilson and Simone Marchesi. Their work has often inspired my research, and they generously offered suggestions on this project and on others related to it. I owe a particular debt to David Lummus and Sabrina Ferri for their collegiality, for their scholarly insights, and for their warm friendship. Other colleagues and friends who have assisted with this project include Luca Cottini, Jesse Flavin, Brendan Hennessey, Laurence Hooper, Charles Leavitt IV, Adrianna Paliyenko, Jeremiah Reedy, Stefano Reksten, Mark Ross, and John Welle. My heartfelt thanks go to those associated with the Medieval Institute of Notre Dame. Former director Thomas F. X. Noble supported the initial stages of this project in crucial ways. Roberta Baranowski, Margaret Cinninger, Linda Major, and Julia Schneider assisted with matters ranging from the quotidian to the bibliographical. The coffee crew of Narberth, Chuck, Hilda, Jen, Joe, Ken, Dr. Ken, and Len provided encouragement and laughter in the final stages of the book’s writing. Matthew Dowd, David Juarez, Stephen Little, and Wendy McMillen at the University of Notre Dame Press made the process of publishing the book a pleasure. The three anonymous readers gave constructive advice for issues concerning argumentation and rhetoric. I am particularly grateful to Scott Barker, who copyedited the manuscript and worked patiently with me as I made changes to the text.
Initial research for this project was supported by a Fulbright Fellowship, by grants endowed by the Devers and Ravarino families, and by an Edward Sorin Postdoctoral Fellowship at the University of Notre Dame. The Subvention Program of Villanova University provided funds for several expenses related to publication. A section of the first chapter originally appeared in Studi sul Boccaccio 37 (2009): 197–226. It has been revised and is reprinted with permission. Finally, I am grateful for the love and encouragement of my mother, Judy, my father, John, and my brother, Tony. The book is dedicated to my wife, Caroline, who is a first-rate editor, a savvy interpreter of medieval culture, a bedrock of emotional support, and above all my dearest friend.
ABBREVIATIONS, EDITIONS, TRANSLATIONS
The following abbreviations, editions, and English translations are used thoughout. Other editions of primary sources are listed in the notes. ABC Toledano, Archivo y Biblioteca Capitulares Aen . Virgil, Aeneidos , in Opera , ed. Roger A. B. Mynors (Oxford: Clarendon, 1969), 104–422 AM Boccaccio, Allegoria mitologica , ed. Manlio Pastore Stocchi, in Tutte le opere , 5.2:1098–1113 Ameto Boccaccio, Comedia delle ninfe fiorentine , ed. Antonio E. Quaglio, in Tutte le opere , 2:679–835; L’Ameto , tra