Irish poet, playwright and translator, Seamus Heaney first encountered Giovanni Pascoli’s work in 2001 on a visit to Urbino. Heaney later translated and reworked Pascoli’s L’aquilone (The Kite) which was published in 2009. Heaney went on to translate L’ultima passeggiata (The Last Walk) which was published after his death in 2013 in a limited edition. [1]
Giovanni Pascoli was an Italian poet and classical scholar born on 31 December 1855, in San Mauro di Romagna, a small village in the region of Emilia-Romagna, Italy. He was the fourth of ten children to Ruggero Pascoli and Caterina Vincenzi, and his family was comfortable financially.
His early life was marked by tragedy, which significantly influenced his poetry. In 1867, when he was 12, his father was shot and killed by an assassin hiding in a ditch by the road. His mother died the following year and five other children in the family had also died before he became an adult.
After the death of his parents, Pascoli and his siblings were cared for by their paternal grandfather. Pascoli showed early promise in academics, and he pursued classical studies at the Liceo Classico di Rimini. Later, he continued his education at the University of Bologna, where his teacher and mentor was Giosuè Carducci. During his university years, Pascoli became involved in literary and philosophical circles. These pursuits were temporarily interrupted when he suffered a mental breakdown in 1882. After spending some time in various psychiatric institutions, he resumed his studies and completed his degree. In 1895, Pascoli began teaching Greek at the University of Bologna, a position he held until his death.
Some of Pascoli’s notable works include Myricae, published in 1891, and Canti di Castelvecchio, published in 1903. Throughout his life, he wrote poetry that showcased his love for the Italian landscape, nature, and a deep connection to the rural world. He was known for his ability to evoke a sense of nostalgia for the past and capture the beauty of the Italian countryside in his verses and is regarded as the greatest Italian poet writing at the beginning of the 20th century,
Selected links for relevant websites, books, movies, videos, and more. Some of these links lead to protected content on this website, learn more about that here.