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Alessandro
Manzoni
Manzoni,
Alessandro Francesco Tommaso
Antonio (1785-1873), Italian
novelist, poet, and playwright,
born in Milan. As a young man he
espoused the rationalism and
scepticism prevailing in French
literature of the Enlightenment.
After 1808 his position was that
which generally characterized
Romantic Italian literature of
the first half of the 19th
century: a combination of ardent
patriotism and devout Roman
Catholicism.
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He took
part in the unsuccessful Milanese revolt
of 1848 against Austrian rule and in 1860
became a senator in the legislative body
of the new kingdom of Italy. Before 1825
he was known as a poet and playwright.
Among his writings of this period were an
ode on Napoleon's death, Il cinque maggio
(1822, The Fifth of May), the volume of
religious lyrics Inni Sacri (1810, Sacred
Hymns), and the Romantic tragedies Count
of Carmagnola (1820, trans. 1868) and
Adelchi (1822, trans. 1868). Manzoni is
best known for I promessi sposi
(1825-1827, The Betrothed, 1834), a
Romantic historical novel of life in Milan
under Spanish rule in the 17th century.
The work, a classic of world literature,
set a standard for modern Italian prose
and influenced later novelists. It has
been translated into many languages. The
Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi wrote
(1874) his Requiem to honour Manzoni's
memory and it is sometimes called the
"Manzoni Requiem".
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