Abstract
In Victorian England, the complex and problematic Anglo-Italian identity of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, «a great Italian tormented in the Inferno of London», could not but bear consequences. Those who would read his Dante translations and his original poems, were struck by his «strange accent », an accent not fully British. Those who heard him, were struck by his voice. This essay proposes to follow the trajectory of a significant passage, from the Italian poetic tradition to a stylistic innovation within the realm of English poetry. Forcing the limits of prosodic conventions, Rossetti’s «Italian voice» and his legendary mastery in reading aloud created the possibility for a new music to be heard, thus demonstrating how the pentameter could modulate into the accents of the Italian hendecasyllable, how the English iamb could morph into “the iamb of Dante”.
| Translated title of the contribution | Dante Gabriel Rossetti, an un-British artist and an English poet with an Italian voice |
|---|---|
| Original language | Italian |
| Title of host publication | Con altri occhi |
| Subtitle of host publication | La letteratura italiana fuori d'Italia (1860-1900) |
| Editors | Roberto Ubbidiente, Elisa Martínez Garrido, Marco De Cristofaro |
| Place of Publication | Pisa |
| Publisher | Pacini Editore s.r.l. |
| Chapter | 3 |
| Pages | 51-78 |
| Number of pages | 28 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9791254864579 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9791254864562 |
| Publication status | Published - 29 Nov 2024 |