Chapter XI: The Drama

First attempts at Secular Drama--The _Orfeo_ and _Timone_--General Character of Italian Plays--Court Pageants and Comedies borrowed from the Latin--Conditions under which a National Drama is formed--Their absence in Italy--Lack of Tragic Genius--Eminently Tragic Material in Italian History--The Use made of this by English Playwrights--The Ballad and the Drama--The Humanistic Bias in Italy--Parallels between Greek and Italian Life--Il Lasca's Critique of the Latinizing Playwrights--The _Sofonisba_ of Trissino--Rucellai's _Rosmunda_--Sperone's _Canace_--Giraldi's _Orbecche_--Dolce's _Marianna_--Transcripts from the Greek Tragedians and Seneca--General Character of Italian Tragedies--Sources of their Failure--Influence of Plautus and Terence over Comedy--Latin Comedies acted at Florence, Rome, Ferrara--Translations of Latin Comedies--Manner of Representation at Court--Want of Permanent Theaters--Bibbiena's _Calandra_--Leo X. and Comedy at Rome--Ariosto's Treatment of his Latin Models--The _Cassaria_, _Suppositi_, _Lena_, _Negromante_, _Scolastica_--Qualities of Ariosto's Comedies--Machiavelli's Plays--The _Commedia in Prosa_--Fra Alberigo and Margherita--The _Clizia_--Its Humor--The _Mandragola_--Its sinister Philosophy--Conditions under which it was Composed--Aretino disengages Comedy from Latin Rules--His Point of View--The _Cortegiana_, _Marescalco_, _Talanta_--Italy had innumerable Comedies, but no great Comic Art--General Character of the _Commedia Erudita_--Its fixed Personages--Gelli, Firenzuola, Cecchi, Ambra, Il Lasca--The Farsa--Conclusion on the Moral Aspects of Italian Comedy 108

CHAPTER XII.

PASTORAL AND DIDACTIC POETRY.

The Idyllic Ideal--Golden Age--Arcadia--Sannazzaro--His Life--The Art of the _Arcadia_--Picture-painting--Pontano's Poetry--The Neapolitan Genius--Baiaee and Eridanus--Eclogues--The Play of _Cefalo_--Castiglione's _Tirsi_--Rustic Romances--Molza's Biography--The _Ninfa Tiberina_--Progress of Didactic Poetry--Rucellai's _Api_--Alamanni's _Coltivazione_--His Life--His Satires--Pastoral Dramatic Poetry--The _Aminta_--The _Pastor Fido_--Climax of Renaissance Art 194