| The general aim of my dissertation is to probe Aretino's sense of the theatre and of reality and to show that theatrical metaphors lie at the very heart of his text. I propose both an exploration of metaphoric patterns that follow a circular motion within the text and an analysis of the moral, epistemological debate within his idea of the theatre. The Renaissance, as well as antiquity, knew that "totus mundus agit histrionem." By examining some traditional Renaissance themes (role of courtier and courtesan, play, disguise and deception, importance of order, world as the marketplace, the "beffa") which are recurrent in every comedy, this study focuses essentially on the following related issues: the court as a stage; the extraordinary power of imagination and the constant attempt to limit it; and the importance of verbal action.;Chapter I deals with La Cortigiana and Rome as court and theatre. Chapter II focuses on La Talanta seen as the representation of the marketplace of desire. Chapter III is an analysis of the question of order within the family and society as portrayed in Lo Ipocrito. Chapter IV is centered around Il Marescalco and the value of the "beffa" as a theatrical metaphor. Chapter V consists of the illustration of the power of language over action represented in Il Filosofo.;Each chapter discusses a different comedy and, particularly, one important issue in that comedy. Every chapter addresses, thus, different traits of Aretino's text, which are all vital parts in every comedy. They are the means by which he defines his vision of the theatre as a mirror (deforming or not) of what we call reality. |
