Giovanni Battista Guarini

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Alias: Giambattista Guarini

Life

Born: 10 December 1538 in Ferrara

Died: 7 October 1612 in Venice

Biography

Giovanni Battista Guarini was an Italian poet, dramatist, and diplomat. He was born in Ferrara, and spent his early life both in Padua and Ferrara, entering the service of Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, in 1567. After 15 years in the service of the Duke, he resigned and withdrew to his family estate, the Villa Guarina, where he wrote his most notable work, Il pastor fido (1590; The Faithful Shepherd, 1647). This play, a pastoral tragicomedy, polished in style, was translated into many languages and became popular during the 17th century. It set the pattern for a code of refinement and gallantry that lasted until the late 18th century.

A number of his madrigal poems have been recently translated by Nicholas Jones in A Poetry Precise and Free: Selected Madrigals of Guarini (Univ. of Michigan Press, 2017).

View the Wikipedia article on Giovanni Battista Guarini.

Texts by Giovanni Battista Guarini

Settings of text by Giovanni Battista Guarini

Publications

External links

Il pastor fido

Italian editions:
Orleans, 1785 Pisa, 1819
English edition:
English translation at Google Books.