The Arthur of the Italians: The Arthurian Legend in Medieval Italian Literature and Culture (Arthurian Literature in the Middle Ages #7)

The Arthurian legend reached all levels of society in medieval and Renaissance Italy, from princely courts, with their luxury books and frescoed palaces, to the merchant classes and popular audiences in the piazza, who enjoyed shorter retellings in verse and prose. The Arthur of the Italians offers an overview of the Arthurian fiction and art created in Italy during this time, with chapters examining, among other topics, the transmission of the French romances across Italy; the reworking of Arthurian tales in various Italian regional dialects; the textual relations of the story of Tristan; the narrative structures employed by Italian writers; later ottava rima poetic versions in the new medium of printed books; and the Arthurian-themed art of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. "This is the first comprehensive book on the Arthurian legend in medieval and Renaissance Italy since Edmund Gardner's 1930 The Arthurian Legend in Italian Literature. The Arthurian legend material reached all levels of society, from princely courts with their luxury books and frescoed palaces, to the merchant classes and even popular audiences in the piazza, which enjoyed shorter retellings in verse and prose. Unique assemblages emerge on Italian soil, such as the Compilation of Rustichello da Pisa or the innovative Tavola Ritonda, in versions made for both Tuscany and the Po Valley. This volume examines the transmission of the French romances across Italy; reworkings in various Italian regional dialects and non-Italian languages; the textual relations of the prose Tristan; narrative structures employed by Italian writers; later ottava rima poetic versions in the new medium of printed books; and the Arthurian-themed art of the Middle Ages and Renaissance, in a rich corpus of new criticism by scholars bringing the Italian Arthurian material back into critical conversation in English"--Provided by publisher This is the first comprehensive book on the Arthurian legend in medieval and Renaissance Italy since Edmund Gardner's 1930 The Arthurian Legend in Italian Literature . Arthurian material reached all levels of Italian society, from princely courts with their luxury books and frescoed palaces, to the merchant classes and even popular audiences in the piazza , which enjoyed shorter retellings in verse and prose. Unique assemblages emerge on Italian soil, such as the Compilation of Rustichello da Pisa or the innovative Tavola Ritonda , in versions made for both Tuscany and the Po Valley. Chapters examine the transmission of the French romances across Italy; reworkings in various Italian regional dialects; the textual relations of the prose Tristan ; narrative structures employed by Italian writers; later ottava rima poetic versions in the new medium of printed books; the Arthurian-themed art of the Middle Ages and Renaissance; and more. The Arthur of the Italians offers a rich corpus of new criticism by scholars who have brought the Italian Arthurian material back into critical conversation. Cover 1 Back Cover 313 Contents 8 Preface 10 The Contributors 12 Abbreviations 14 Introduction: The Arthur of the Italians 16 1 Arthuriana in the Italian Regions of Medieval Francophonia 26 2 French Redactions in Italy: Rustichello da Pisa 36 3 From France to Italy: The Tristan Texts 56 4 The Italian Contribution: La Tavola Ritonda 84 5 Narrative Structure in Medieval Italian Arthurian Romance 106 6 Arthurian Material in Italian Cantari 120 7 Arthur as Renaissance Epic 136 8 The Arthurian Presence in Early Italian Lyric 148 9 Arthur in Medieval Italian Short Narrative 160 10 The Arthurian Tradition in the Three Crowns 173 11 Arthur in Hagiography: The Legend of San Galgano 194 12 Owners and Readers of Arthurian Books in Italy 205 13 Arthurian Art in Italy 220 14 Arthurian Art References 248 Bibliography: Primary Texts 262 Bibliography: Studies 269 Index of Manuscripts 296 General Index 299 Annotation The Arthurian legend in medieval and Renaissance Italy is the focus of this new collaborative history