The Early Poetry of Guittone d'Arezzo

Abstract

Guittone d'Arezzo's critical fortunes have risen over the past fifty years to the point where he now commands grudging respect from serious readers of Duecento literature. But his poetry remains lapidary, often wilfully obscure; and it is too sparing of fancy and verbal beauty to hold for long any but the most dogged reader. Large areas of his work are still neglected, and the same few poems, reprinted in anthologies, continue to be read in isolation. But they cannot be understood properly unless we know what Guittone disowned when he turned his back on 'Amore'. This study offers an interpretation of that imposing body of work which the poet claims to have rejected. This book, originally published in paperback in 1976 under the ISBN 978-0-900547-41-6, was made Open Access in 2024 as part of the MHRA Revivals programme.