Modern Italian Poets; Essays and Versions

"Modern Italian Poets; Essays and Versions" by William Dean Howells is a collection of essays that explores the major figures in Italian poetry from the 1700s to Italy's unification in 1870. It looks at how their poems reflected and influenced the fight for national freedom and identity. The book starts by explaining how the author wanted to create this collection based on his earlier studies in Italy. Although it might not cover every poet from that time, it focuses on the important people and their works, creating a timeline of literary movements that mirrored the social and political changes of the time. Italian poetry was a way for people to express their emotions during political conflicts, and the book examines this through poets like Giuseppe Parini and Vittorio Alfieri, setting up a framework for discussions on the history and beauty of the poems.