Parini, Giuseppe

Parini, Giuseppe

(jo͞ozĕp`pā pärē`nē), 1729–99, Italian poet, a priest and teacher. He was a professor and a superintendent of schools in Milan; a liberal, Parini became (1796) a government official in the Napoleonic occupation. Best known of his verse is The Day (4 parts, 1763–1804; tr. 1927), a mock-didactic poem that satirizes the arrogance and depravity of the nobility. Parini's style was polished and reminiscent of classical Latin; he was widely emulated during the national revival. He also wrote lyrics, a drama, critical essays, and dialogues.

Parini, Giuseppe

 

Born May 23, 1729, in Bosisio, now Bosisio-Parini, Como; died Aug. 15, 1799, in Milan. Italian poet.

An outstanding teacher, Parini became a priest in 1754. His odes The Rural Life (1758), The Open Air (1759), and Upbringing (1764) glorify the man who is brought up with work and is close to nature. His central work is the narrative poem The Day (parts 1–4, 1763–1804), comprising Morning, Midday, Evening, and Night. The Day is a satire on the idleness and spiritual emptiness of the aristocracy; in lyrical digressions the sorrowful voice of a poet-citizen can be heard. Parini’s poetry represents one of the peaks of Italian Enlightenment classicism.

WORKS

Tutte le opere, edite ed inedite. Florence, 1925.

REFERENCES

De Sanctis, F. Istoriia ital’ianskoi literatury, vol. 2. Moscow, 1964.
Sapegno, N. Poetica e poesia del Parini. Rome, 1960.
Fubini, M., and E. Bonora. Interpretazione del Parini. Milan [1966].
Petronio, G. Parini e I’illuminismo lombardo, 2nd ed. Bari, 1972.