Veronica Franco (whose life is featured in the motion picture
"Dangerous Beauty") was a sixteenth-century Venetian beauty, poet,
and protofeminist. This collection captures the frank eroticism and
impressive eloquence that set her apart from the chaste, silent
woman prescribed by Renaissance gender ideology.
As an "honored courtesan," Franco made her living by arranging to
have sexual relations, for a high fee, with the elite of Venice and
the many travelers--merchants, ambassadors, even kings--who passed
through the city. Courtesans needed to be beautiful, sophisticated
in their dress and manners, and elegant, cultivated
conversationalists. Exempt from many of the social and educational
restrictions placed on women of the Venetian patrician class,
Franco used her position to recast "virtue" as "intellectual
integrity," offering wit and refinement in return for patronage and
a place in public life.
Franco became a writer by allying herself with distinguished men at
the center of her city's culture, particularly in the informal
meetings of a literary salon at the home of Domenico Venier, the
oldest member of a noble family and a former Venetian senator.
Through Venier's protection and her own determination, Franco
published work in which she defended her fellow courtesans,
speaking out against their mistreatment by men and criticizing the
subordination of women in general. Venier also provided literary
counsel when she responded to insulting attacks written by the male
Venetian poet Maffio Venier.
Franco's insight into the power conflicts between men and women and
her awareness of the threat she posed to her male contemporaries
make her life and work pertinent today.
General
Imprint: |
University of Chicago Press
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
February 1999 |
First published: |
February 1999 |
Authors: |
Veronica Franco
|
Dimensions: |
230 x 152 x 19mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Paperback
|
Pages: |
326 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-226-25987-1 |
Categories: |
Books
|
LSN: |
0-226-25987-0 |
Barcode: |
9780226259871 |
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