Italian Literature for Beginners

[Dantesque Dream]

Hello! I’m pleased to join you, and I hope we can have interesting discussions in the future. I have recently finished an intermediate level course on Italian Language and Civilization. Now, as I ingress in the advanced level, I would like to start exploring Italy’s classic literature in its original language. At my current level, however, I believe most of the Italian classics I’m acquainted with would probably be somewhat heavy. I’m currently reading Italo Calvino’s Perché leggere I classici, and, after that, I’m thinking of trying Le avventure di Pinocchio, Calvino’s own Il barone rampante and, after that, perhaps Le città invisibili. After these, I was thinking of experimenting with some modernist poetry and, if confident, with Il Gattopardo and I promessi sposi. Only after that I intend to look for earlier poetry and prose. Does anyone have other recommendations of Italian books whose language would be adequate for beginners? Thank you very much for your attention and contribution.

[YesNo]

I don't know much about Italian literature, but their pizza is pretty good. You might want to write some reviews of what you have read here. It would be a good way to organize your thoughts on the topic. I would be interested in reading them.

[mortalterror]

I'm not sure it's good for beginners, but when I read Italian literature in translation I read Dante's Divine Comedy, Boccaccio's Decameron, Petrarch's Canzoniere, Ariosto's Orlando Furioso, Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered, and Selected Poems of Leopardi. They were all pretty good. I'd recommend them to anybody.

[Dantesque Dream]

I don't know much about Italian literature, but their pizza is pretty good. You might want to write some reviews of what you have read here. It would be a good way to organize your thoughts on the topic. I would be interested in reading them.

Thank you for your response, YesNo! I'm somewhat busy this month, but, when I have the time, I will be sure to stop by and share some of my impressions on these books.


I'm not sure it's good for beginners, but when I read Italian literature in translation I read Dante's Divine Comedy, Boccaccio's Decameron, Petrarch's Canzoniere, Ariosto's Orlando Furioso, Tasso's Jerusalem Delivered, and Selected Poems of Leopardi. They were all pretty good. I'd recommend them to anybody.

Thank you so much for your recommendations, MortalTerror. Not surprisingly, given my nickname, Dante is my absolute favorite author in all ages, all literary traditions. The Commedia summarizes all facets of Christian life and literature in the Middle Ages, from the Goliards and the diabolic humor of the Mysteries, represented in the devils of Inferno, like in Cantos XII and XIII, to the Franciscan hymns, preeminent in Purgatorio, and the devotional hymns so touching in Paradiso; from the poetry of the troubadours, like in the appearance of Arnaut Daniel at Canto XXVI of Purgatorio, to the Dolce Stil Novo present in Hell, Purgatory and even Paradise; from the popular Italian superstitions about Hell to the rigorous logic of Thomas Aquinas and the scholastics, that organizes the entire work; etc etc. The other world was built with the breathing elements of our own, and, just as Dante returns to Antiquity in order to sum up his world and point towards his utopian ideas, he also opens the way for anthropocentric representation and humanism in European Literature, inaugurating the Renaissance. In fact, it’s such a fantastic work that I know by heart at least three Cantos from each of the three books that constitute the entire poem, despite my yet relatively precarious command of the Italian language. Dante’s language is slightly different from modern Italian and, of course, slightly beyond the level of most beginners, but it is still simple and elegant. I can still read him with some difficulty, but I constantly need to consult my Zingarelli in order to fill the gaps I cannot grasp from my knowledge alone, so I believe it may be better for me to postpone tackling the whole Commedia in Italian until I have read more books written in a more accessible language. On the other hand, Ariosto and, especially, Tasso, who was already a pioneer of many of the elements of Late Renaissance and Baroque literature, are quite more challenging in terms of language. Tasso is very eloquent, but also extremely ornate and sumptuous in his use of the vernacular, and this can be somewhat challenging for beginners like me. On the other hand, they are also a bit more formulaic, which makes their comprehension slightly easier in some respects. Both poets are also dear to me, but I admit I have too much of a hard time with them right now to attempt reading their epics from beginning end in the original Italian. Ideally, in order to progress with their octaves in a more flexible and comfortable pace, like it was originally intended by the authors – this natural fluidity of the language being one of the great virtues of the heroic octave as a form, just as much as their rhetorical effectiveness –, I would like to accumulate more experience before attempting to read their masterpieces more seriously in their original language. I find Petrach and Boccaccio easier, but also challenging for my current level. Leopardi, also one of my favorites, is generally easier, but, due to his occasional use of archaisms and Latinisms, both syntactical and lexical, I sometimes find him harder than Montale, Quasimodo, Pavese and Ungaretti. That’s why I intend to leave his Canti for later.


Do you have any favorite authors from the Italian tradition? My favorite would certainly be Dante, but I’m unsure about the second place. Leopardi, Ariosto and Tasso are all pretty close in my estimation.